Philosophy 185

In this course, we will trace the development of Heidegger’s philosophical work from his early attempt to work out a “fundamental ontology” to his late projects of formulating a “history of Being” and of elaborating a new, “poetic” way of thinking. Based on close readings of selected texts including Being and Time, The Origin of the Work of Art, and “The Question Concerning Technology,” we will analyze key concepts such as “Being” and “beings,” “temporality” and “historicity,” or “enowning” and “enframing.” Led by these texts, we will explore how Heidegger seeks to reconceive subjectivity, intersubjectivity, cognition, and language by dissociating his own approach from the philosophical tradition (in particular, from Aristotle, Descartes, Kant, Nietzsche, and Husserl). This will allow us to examine Heidegger’s understanding of what it means for humans to live “authentically” in the face of their mortality, to act creatively, or to develop a “free relation” to technology; it will also give us the opportunity to critically analyze the often problematic political and ideological implications of his thinking. While all required and recommended readings as well as all other materials relevant for this course will be available through bCourses, you might consider purchasing a hard copy of Being and Time. The edition we will be working with is Martin Heidegger, Being and Time, translated by John Macquarrie and Edward Robinson (New York et al.: Harper Perennial, 2008).