Before getting specific, it would be disingenuous in a work on dialogue to not begin with an acknowledgement of the influence and contribution of everyone I have connected with over the years. I owe a great debt to everyone, especially, in connection to this work, my colleagues and professors at The Evergreen State College and Antioch University Seattle.
I cannot say enough to thank Erica Stillman, my partner, for her love and support during this work and, more importantly, for her love and support during everything else.
I could not have done this work without the support and collaboration of Robin Fenske during my undergraduate studies at The Evergreen State College. I wish for everyone the experience of close collaboration with a fun, smart and engaged colleague like that I shared with Robin.
If, as suggested by Mary Parker Follett, the true test of a teacher-student relationship is whether the student can build on the work of the teacher, I hope that this work is in some way a monument of success for Dr. Patrick J. Hill of The Evergreen State College. Without hesitation, I dedicate the success of this paper as celebration of Patrick as a teacher in the best meaning of Follett’s notion and more.
Of course, I keep any mistakes and failures in this work for myself.