The Duplicity of Philosophy's Shadow

Heidegger, Nazism, and the Jewish Other

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Phenomenology, Judaism, History
Cover of the book The Duplicity of Philosophy's Shadow by Elliot R. Wolfson, Columbia University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Elliot R. Wolfson ISBN: 9780231546249
Publisher: Columbia University Press Publication: April 24, 2018
Imprint: Columbia University Press Language: English
Author: Elliot R. Wolfson
ISBN: 9780231546249
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Publication: April 24, 2018
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Language: English

Martin Heidegger (1889–1976) is considered one of the most influential philosophers of the twentieth century in spite of his well-known transgressions—his complicity with National Socialism and his inability to show remorse or compassion for its victims. In The Duplicity of Philosophy’s Shadow, Elliot R. Wolfson intervenes in a debate that has seen much attention in scholarly and popular media from a unique perspective, as a scholar of Jewish mysticism and philosophy who has been profoundly influenced by Heidegger’s work.

Wolfson sets out to probe Heidegger’s writings to expose what remains unthought. In spite of Heidegger’s explicit anti-Semitic statements, Wolfson reveals some crucial aspects of his thinking—including criticism of the biological racism and militant apocalypticism of Nazism—that betray an affinity with dimensions of Jewish thought: the triangulation of the concepts of homeland, language, and peoplehood; Jewish messianism and the notion of historical time as the return of the same that is always different; inclusion, exclusion, and the status of the other; the problem of evil in kabbalistic symbolism. Using Heidegger’s own methods, Wolfson reflects on the inextricable link of truth and untruth and investigates the matter of silence and the limits of speech. He challenges the tendency to bifurcate the relationship of the political and the philosophical in Heidegger’s thought, but parts company with those who write off Heidegger as a Nazi ideologue. Ultimately, The Duplicity of Philosophy’s Shadow argues, the greatness and relevance of Heidegger’s work is that he presents us with the opportunity to think the unthinkable as part of our communal destiny as historical beings.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Martin Heidegger (1889–1976) is considered one of the most influential philosophers of the twentieth century in spite of his well-known transgressions—his complicity with National Socialism and his inability to show remorse or compassion for its victims. In The Duplicity of Philosophy’s Shadow, Elliot R. Wolfson intervenes in a debate that has seen much attention in scholarly and popular media from a unique perspective, as a scholar of Jewish mysticism and philosophy who has been profoundly influenced by Heidegger’s work.

Wolfson sets out to probe Heidegger’s writings to expose what remains unthought. In spite of Heidegger’s explicit anti-Semitic statements, Wolfson reveals some crucial aspects of his thinking—including criticism of the biological racism and militant apocalypticism of Nazism—that betray an affinity with dimensions of Jewish thought: the triangulation of the concepts of homeland, language, and peoplehood; Jewish messianism and the notion of historical time as the return of the same that is always different; inclusion, exclusion, and the status of the other; the problem of evil in kabbalistic symbolism. Using Heidegger’s own methods, Wolfson reflects on the inextricable link of truth and untruth and investigates the matter of silence and the limits of speech. He challenges the tendency to bifurcate the relationship of the political and the philosophical in Heidegger’s thought, but parts company with those who write off Heidegger as a Nazi ideologue. Ultimately, The Duplicity of Philosophy’s Shadow argues, the greatness and relevance of Heidegger’s work is that he presents us with the opportunity to think the unthinkable as part of our communal destiny as historical beings.

More books from Columbia University Press

Cover of the book Religion, the Enlightenment, and the New Global Order by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book Experiencing Music Video by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book The Kojiki by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book From Extreme Violence to the Problem of Civility by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book The Faith of Biology and the Biology of Faith by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book The Gold Standard at the Turn of the Twentieth Century by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book There Are Two Sexes by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book Courtesans and Opium by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book An Empire of Touch by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book Sweet and Lowdown by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book Historical Atlas of Northeast Asia, 1590-2010 by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book Traditional Japanese Literature by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book Hatred and Forgiveness by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book What China and India Once Were by Elliot R. Wolfson
Cover of the book "Do You Have a Band?" by Elliot R. Wolfson
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy