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Authenticity and social responsibility: The question of ethics in Heidegger's 'Being and Time'

Posted on:2005-11-29Degree:Ph.DType:Dissertation
University:Loyola University ChicagoCandidate:Sun, XiaolingFull Text:PDF
GTID:1455390011952409Subject:Philosophy
Abstract/Summary:
My dissertation explores the ethical dimension of Heidegger's analytic of Dasein in Being and Time through a development of Heidegger's notion of authentic solicitude for others, which entails an ethical relationship between human beings.;Being and Time is commonly taken as containing two competing themes. One is represented by Heidegger's claim that Dasein is Mitsein , that is, the human being is inherently related to other humans in the world. The other theme concerns Dasein's authenticity, which emphasizes the radical choice that Dasein makes in the face of its own inevitable mortality. The latter theme is frequently understood as excluding any genuine interpersonal relations. In response, I argue in my dissertation: First, by Mitsein , Heidegger envisions a conception of original sociality that takes into account both the commonality (the "we" dimension) and particularity (the I-other/thou relation) essential to a vital community. Second, the authentic individuation does not admit the individual as a self-grounding existence. Instead, the self must be understood in light of Dasein's radical (ecstatic) openness to being, including the world, others and itself. Consequently, the positive sense of Heidegger's authentic individuation must be sought in Dasein's finite freedom that underwrites its responsibility to its being that is inherently related to other Daseins. Following these I attempt a dialogical reading of Heidegger's authentic solicitude in opposition to its egological or monological interpretations. By this means, I work out the full ethical potentials of Heidegger's analytic of Dasein.;My dissertation offers a reading of Heidegger's analytic of Dasein from an ethical perspective, without, however, losing sight to its ontological breadth and profundity.
Keywords/Search Tags:Heidegger's, Dasein, Ethical, Authentic
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