Heidegger's Being and Time: An Introduction (Cambridge Introductions to Key Philosophical Texts) [Paperback]

Paul Gorner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 28, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0521540720 | ISBN-13: 978-0521540728 | Edition: 1

In Being and Time Heidegger gives an account of the distinctive features of human existence, in an attempt to answer the question of the meaning of being. He finds that underlying all of these features is what he calls 'original time'. In this clear and straightforward introduction to the text, Paul Gorner takes the reader through the work, examining its detail and explaining the sometimes difficult language which Heidegger uses. The topics which he covers include being-in-the-world, being-with, thrownness and projection, truth, authenticity, time and being, and historicity. His book makes Being and Time accessible to students in a way that conveys the essence of Heidegger's project and remains true to what is distinctive about his thinking.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Gorner never loses sight of the question of the meaning of being that drives Being and Time, always returns appropriately to how Heidegger's phenomenology functions in the book, and connects everything to how 'Dasein' is defined by its disclosedness. ... Gorner's book has many serious merits ... and deserves to be studied by anyone who wants to understand Being and Time.' Milltown Studies

Book Description

This introduction to Being and Time takes the reader through the work, examining its detail and explaining the language which Heidegger uses. It makes Being and Time accessible to students in a way that conveys the essence of Heidegger's project and remains true to what is distinctive about his thinking.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 204 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 1 edition (May 28, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521540720
• ISBN-13: 978-0521540728
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,263,792 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An introduction that digs a little deeper than usual..., January 29, 2009

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ewomack "ewomack" (MN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Heidegger's Being and Time: An Introduction (Cambridge Introductions to Key Philosophical Texts) (Paperback)

Introductions in English to Heidegger's dense masterpiece "Being and Time" have reached epidemic proportions. Each passing year adds to the girth of fiber promising easy, or at least easier, access to this notoriously difficult text. Though nearly all of them follow the ordering of Heidegger's own arguments, many take differing approaches. Polt's 1999 introduction offers a section-by-section outline. Large and Cerbone group by subject and only make reference to actual section numbers when necessary. Blattner and Dreyfus take more selective approaches and focus mainly on Division I. Blattner even dismisses large portions of Division II. All of these texts cover the basics but each offers various nuances and unique perspectives on the importance of "Being and Time." All of them are fit for beginners, even absolute beginners.

Enter Gorner's introduction. This book is, in essence, an introduction. No doubt about that. But it might cause distress for absolute beginners. Those who have read other introductions to Heidegger and have basic familiarity with Hedeggerian terminology will have few problems. But Gorner's text, effective and engaging as it is, remains thick throughout. Things get particularly sticky during coverage of Division II's more esoteric subjects. Add to that, the book dives right into an overview of "Being of Time" straight off. This is an excellent overview, one worth revisiting again and again. Its brevity allows a glimpse of the whole beast. But absolute newcomers will likely struggle with it, as it introduces concepts not yet elucidated.

Nonetheless, this book represents the perfect second or third book to read on "Being and Time." It engages with the themes at a grittier level than the introductions mentioned above. Gorner even throws in criticisms that he leaves to the reader's discretion. These usually appear at the end of each chapter and they prompt deep reflection. Chapter 2, for example, raises potential conflicts in Heidegger's phenomenological notions of 'seeing' and 'interpretation.' Most introductory texts don't dig to this level. Each of the book's chapters take overarching themes, such as "The Question of Being," "Being-In-The-World," "Being-With," "Being-In," "Truth," "Authenticity," and "Time and Being." A final chapter explores "later Heidegger" and the turn away from phenomenology via his 1953 essay "The Question Concerning Technology." Repetition of themes throughout helps solidify terms and concepts. For example, the crucial tripartite concept of care gets re-elucidated explicitly in the context of "ecstatic temporality." This method proves especially felicitous when discussing the notoriously murky sections on temporality. The discussions on these themes, in chapter 8, "Time and Being," are particularly elucidating, though by no means easy going. Without a doubt, Gorner's book prepares one for a dive into the text of "Being and Time" itself, though some may have to explore other books beforehand.

Gorner's short but dense book will further engage the initiated. Those looking to take their Heidegger studies to a deeper level should begin here. Also, Gorner seems equally comfortable with the usually adumbrated themes of Division I and the often dismissed ideas contained in Division II. He wraps them together as effortlessly as possible, and even gives a shadowy glimpse at Division III. The initial overview, the sporadic criticisms, and the deep delineations take this book beyond most introductions. German also pervades the text (in some cases to an almost distracting level), which facilitates a deeper understanding of Heidegger's ideas (and shows what sometimes gets lost in translation). Threads to later Heidegger also peek out, in the last chapter mentioned above and in the discussion on Heidegger's "existentialism," which points towards the idea of "the nothing" in the 1929 essay "What Is Metaphysics?" So, in a sense, this book also paves the road for post "Being and Time" study. Ultimately, Gorner has written a challenging and erudite introduction to one of the 20th century's pivotal works. Sharpen your brain with it.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Introduction to Being and Time, October 4, 2008

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Robin Friedman (Washington, D.C. United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Heidegger's Being and Time: An Introduction (Cambridge Introductions to Key Philosophical Texts) (Paperback)

Marin Heidegger's "Being and Time" (1927) is one of the lasting works of 20th Century philosophy. The work is long, formidable and, by any standard, difficult to read. Heidegger is philosophizing against, taking issue with, much of the Western philosophical tradition. Some understanding of philosophy thus is needed in order to understand what Heidegger tries to do in "Being and Time." The writing is difficult, indeed torturous, as Heidegger acknowledges. Throughout the book, Heidegger invents his own new vocabulary and uses common words in highly unusual ways. There are two translations of "Being and Time" in English, the earlier and standard translation by Macquarrie and Robinson, and a more recent translation by Joan Stambaugh.

Readers struggling with "Being and Time" frequently turn to one or more of the many commentaries the book has provoked. The commentaries suggest both the work's difficulty and its significance. I recently reread "Being and Time" and followed my reading immediately with the reading of a recent commentary, Paul Gorner's "Being and Time an Introduction" (2007) as a supplement to my reading of Heidegger's own text. I want to comment on Gorner's guide to Being and Time rather than on Being and Time itself.

Paul Gorner is Honorary Senior Lecturer, University of Aberdeen, and a specialist in German thought. His book is part of a series called "Cambridge Introductions to Key Philosophical Texts." The series also includes introductions to seminal philosophical works such as Kant's "Critique of Pure Reason", Wittgenstein's "Tractatus" and Wittgenstein's "Philosophical Investigations" and Spinoza's "Ethics". Each of these works is written in a difficult nearly impenetrable style with unusual terminology. Philosophical expression is hard, and it worth remembering that Heidegger is not alone in the difficulty of his work.

Other philosophers, beyond those I have named strive for clarity in thought and expression. Gorner seems to be of the latter mind. He is a sympathetic, informed reader of Heidegger who works to explain the text. He does not intrude himself or his own views unduly, but he frequently raises questions and difficulties in Heidegger's approach. His questions are valuable in forcing the reader to consider the text and not simply accept uncritically a difficult presentation. Gorner writes a clear and lucid English. This will come as a relief to most English readers after even a small exposure to Heidegger. Gorner struggles to explain Heidegger's thought in terms that are less obscure than the original. It is a tribute to Gorner that his own analysis, as lucid as he tries to make it, still makes for difficult reading.It is unavoidable in any discussion of "Being and Time."

Gorner's book consists of a short introduction and overview followed by seven chapters of exposition and a concluding chapter which examines Heidegger's famous turn or "kehre" after he wrote "Being and Time". Biographical details are sparse. Gorner gives little consideration to what many readers have seen as the political dimensions of Heidegger's thought. His introductory overview of "Being and Time" (pp. 3-12) is one of the best aspects of the book and will be valuable for those readers with no prior involvement with Heidegger's own text.

Gorner does not offer a section-by-section commentary. Instead, he takes key themes of "Being and Time" and tries to explain them and their interrelationships. Thus he opens with a good treatment of Heidegger's theme: the "Question of Being" and with Heidegger's effort to convince his readers that this question matters and that its significance has been lost. Subsequent chapters deal with "Being-in-the world", "Being-with", "Being-in", "Truth", "Authenticity", and "Time and Being" -- all of which are themes that pervade the book. The subheading in the chapter link the various discussions together and show interrelationships. Thus, the chapter on "Authenticity" follows-through with considerations of "The one (or They)", "Falling", "Dasein in in the Untruth", "Angst", "Death", "Conscience and Guilt", "Resoluteness", and Heidegger's "Existentialism".

In the earlier chapters, Gorner tries to show the reader how Heidegger attempted to disolve problems that have plagued traditional philosophy, such as solipsism, the claimed difficulty of "proving" the existence of the external world" and the nature of other minds. Heidegger does try to show that these issues are essentially pseudo-problems. In this respect, he is similar to many English-speaking philosophers. But I think Gorner loses something of Heidegger's full programme.

Several aspects of Gorner's book are particularly good. First, he offers a good exposition of Heidegger as a phenomenologist and of his use of the phenomenolgical method developed by Heidegger's mentor, Edmund Husserl. Gorner has an understanding of Husserl's thought and explains well how Heidegger both followed and rejected his teachings. It is important to understand the phenomenological method as Heidegger uses it in order to consider how to evaluate the claims he makes in "Being and Time." Gorner's emphasis on phenomenology and on Husserl is salutary.

Gorner also offers an important comparison between Heidegger's theme of "Being-in-the-world" and the "private language" argument developed by Ludwig Wittgenstein (pp.66-67). Wittgenstein developed an argument to attempt to rebut solipsism and skepticism by claiming that such arguments presupposed that there could be a language used and understood by a single private subject. Wittgenstein argued that there could be no private language of this type. Gorner discusses this argument as it affects Heidegger's project. I think Wittgenstein and Heidegger may be closer than Gorner allows.

Finally, Gorner offers a perceptive discussion of Heidegger's relationship to "Existentialism." (pp. 145-152) a term Heidegger himself rejected. Gorner points out that much of "Being and Time", particularly in its themes of authenticity, guilt, anxiety, death, reflects existentialist concerns. But Gorner also stresses the broader character of Heidegger's thought, in its exploration and redirection of metaphysics. Heidegger changed the character of philosophy while paradoxically affirming the significance of the philosophic quest.

Gorner's introduction does not, and does not claim to, capture the complexity and depth of "Being and Time". For readers struggling with the book and wanting a guide, it is an excellent source.

Robin Friedman

3.0 out of 5 stars excellent if you'd like to get the basic ideas quickly, December 24, 2010

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2nd year phil student - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Heidegger's Being and Time: An Introduction (Cambridge Introductions to Key Philosophical Texts) (Paperback)

To reiterate the comment of the previous reviewer, this text is most certainly and 'introduction'. In very simple and clear language, Gorner sets out the basic themes of B n T. This text is excellent for giving a general outline of the goals of the text. Having said that, there are points at which his terminological explanations leave a little bit to be desired. But this niggle is largely due to the brevity of the text.
Though the work does do its job, i must say that it isnt a particularly inspiring account of B n T - something of its magic seems to be missing (thats why i gave it three stars). I have come across other 'summaries' that make Heidegger's ideas seem far more attractive.
Nonetheless, the main selling point of this particular introduction is that if your in a position where you want to learn the basic ideas quickly, its extremely easy to read. Ive managed to knock it over in 2 days.

(also commenting on this other chaps review - if your new to philosophy, Heidegger really isnt the place to start, anything you come across will be very difficult - it simply takes practice to get used to the general thrust of philosophical thinking and language. But if your keen nonetheless, this is as good a place to start as any)