Being And Time

Being and Time (Sein und Zeit) is a philosophical text written by 20th-century German philosopher Martin Heidegger. In it, Heidegger attempts to address the fundamental question of the meaning of being. He does so through a systematic exploration of human existence and its structures. First published in 1927, Being and Time had a major impact on subsequent philosophy. A canonical text of both existentialism and phenomenology (although Heidegger would deny the association with the former), it had a major formative influence on the philosophies of Jean-Paul Sartre, Jacques Derrida, and Herbert Marcuse. The following guide uses the translation from the German by John Macquarrie and Edward Robinson, published by Blackwell in 1962.

Heidegger seeks to re-evaluate a question he believes has been overlooked by the philosophical tradition: that of “Being,” or the fundamental structure of all existence. He does so not through abstract reason but by appeal to the immediate and everyday experiences of the reader. The familiar world of the individual—their work, moods, and social life—something typically ignored by philosophy, is the kernel of Heidegger’s concern. With this approach, he hopes to achieve two things. First, he hopes to revolutionize our understanding of philosophy and the ordinary world.