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“Here I Am”: Reclaiming Moral Presence in a ...

Written by: Gila Hammer Furnes

Abstract: In a culture where children witness cruelty, grief, and injustice on their screens before breakfast—often without an adult to hold what they have seen—this essay reclaims moral presence as a pedagogical condition. Drawing on Lévinas, Buber, Todd, Biesta, and Ellsworth, it introduces Hineni—the Hebrew phrase meaning “Here I am”—as an ethical stance of availability that precedes instruction, autonomy, or deliberation. In contrast to dominant models of moral development that locate ethics in reason, regulation, or curriculum, Hineni reconfigures the child not as a future ethical subject, but as one already present in their trembling response to the world. Situated at the intersection of digital culture, ethical phenomenology, and critical pedagogy, the essay resists calls for digital resilience and instead frames education as a space of mutual presence. It argues that pedagogy must not merely protect the child, but stay with them—in their silence, uncertainty, and proximity to harm. To teach ethically in a digital age, it suggests, is not to command response, but to echo it.

Keywords:Hineni, moral education, digital culture, ethical responsiveness, critical pedagogy

Image: "Hineni" by Howard J Duncan is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

“Here I Am”: Reclaiming Moral Presence in a Culture of Digital Noise

Spatial Theory

Framing Space: Rhetorical Constructions of Digital Elitism in Apple’s Vision Pro Marketing

Framing Space: Rhetorical Constructions of Digital Elitism in Apple’s Vision Pro Marketing

Written by: Brent Lucia

Abstract: This paper analyzes Apple’s Vision Pro promotional video to show how rhetoric shapes the way audiences understand technology and space. Using spatial theory—particularly Henri Lefebvre’s framework for the production of space and Edward Soja’s concept of “third space”—the study offers a rhetorical case analysis of Apple’s introduction of “spatial computing.” The analysis demonstrates how Apple crafts compelling spatial narratives that blur distinctions between physical and digital environments, work and leisure, and private and public life. Four major themes emerge: the construction of place and identity through exclusive, idealized environments; the crossing of boundaries between material and virtual spaces; the concealment of power and control through language of user choice and agency; and the cultural production of space that reinforces neoliberal norms of productivity. Together, these findings show how Apple’s spatial rhetoric simplifies complex spatial relationships, privileges a digitally elite user, and reframes personal environments as commodified spaces.

Keywords: Apple Vision Pro, Spatial Theory, Space, Power, Enhancements, Control