Confronting Heidegger

A Critical Dialogue on Politics and Philosophy

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eText | 22 October 2019 | Edition Number 1

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The question of the relation of Martin Heidegger’s thought to politics has been a subject of controversy since the 1930s, when he became an advocate of the National Socialist regime in Germany. This volume addresses this question in a unique format, as a dialogue among leading Heidegger scholars. That dialogue begins with an exchange between Gregory Fried and Emmanuel Faye about Faye’s contention that Heidegger’s work represents nothing short of “the introduction of Nazism into philosophy.” At stake are issues such as what Heidegger himself understood Nazism to be, whether a thinker’s life and actions define the meaning of his work, the enduring threat of fascism, and the nature of rationality and philosophy itself. Richard Polt, Matthew Sharpe, Dieter Thomä, William Altman, and Sidonie Kellerer join the conversation, with responses from Fried and Faye.

Industry Reviews

Over ten years in the making, this amazing book aims to achieve a genuine philosophical dialogue. Perhaps the scandal of Heidegger’s Nazism has reached a new stage for much of his readership. At first, it seemed that Heidegger made a political error, which he later regretted. Then it seemed that Heidegger had adopted his own personal form of Nazism that did not match orthodox Nazi beliefs. The third stage, presented in this book, is a debate between those who see genuine philosophical merit in Heidegger’s thinking and those who would consign it in toto to Nazi politics. These two sides have difficulty speaking to each other. Faye and his allies construe their reading of Heidegger as “reality” over and against the reading provided by “defenders of Heidegger,” which is certain to upset the latter. Fried and other contributors who recognize the importance of Heidegger’s philosophy explore the profound moral obstacles that come with working in the field of Heidegger studies. Neither side in this debate will be placated by this book, which is why everyone should read it.