Contemporary studies of the phenomenon of attention uncritically suppose that the only way to go about observing attention is as a modification of consciousness. Consciousness is taken to be always intentional, i.e., distinguished by reference to an object-whether physical or not-toward which it is directed. Observers of attention therefore assume that attention is an intentional modification of consciousness. Such practices of observation, in virtue of the kinds of practices that they are, take for granted that the fundamental constituents of reality are subjects and objects. Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger (and Maurice Merleau-Ponty after them) discovered that belief in the world as divided into subjects and objects is merely a convenience designed for the purpose of making a certain kind of sense of experience intelligible-a belief that operates as a controlling assumption which forces the world, if it is to be intelligible, to show up under the oppressively confined ontology that was originally introduced merely as an observational convenience. My work contributes to the prevalent literature an examination of these presuppositions by reconsidering what the landscape of attention studies would look like without the importation of the confinement of a world reduced to subjects in interaction with objects. I do this first by returning to the fundamental and yet strangely forgotten insights into the question that Husserl and Heidegger provided. Then I explore through some of the autobiographical work of Virginia Woolf, Simone Weil, and Pascal a pathway by which we might think differently about what it is to pay attention. I conclude that attention might also be understood as a kind of waiting that does not specify an object, but rather a posture, a way of being that necessarily manifests itself prior to any sort of prejudged or anticipated object. The contribution of my work will serve the community of observers of attention by forcing them to explain what it is to pay attention without reliance on the subject-object distinction.

Zugl. leicht bearb. Fassung von: Freiburg (Breisgau), Univ., Diss., 2009

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T18:00:43Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo2240_1.pdf: 563839 bytes, checksum: 275307af8c76b8aa1826ce1a29fb50eb (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Este presente trabalho tenta demonstrar as similitudes estruturais entre a mística religiosa de Mestre Eckhart e a Analítica Existencial de Martin Heidegger. Tal tarefa se funda na análise da estrutura da Analítica Existencial e suas conseqüências no pensamento heideggeriano: o nada, a diferença existencial, a transcendência do Dasein, a compreensão heideggeriana da angústia, da alétheia, do lógos e do destinamento do ser, bem como na compreensão eckhartiana de Deus, mundo, alma, Abgeschiedenheit, Gelassenheit, diferença e Negatividade. A idéia inicial desta abordagem advém das especulações filosóficas de John Caputo na sua obra The Mystical Element in Heidegger´s Thought. Definir, portanto, a própria tradição em que Mestre Eckhart se filia Filo de Alexandria, Plotino e Dionisius é tentar delimitar com mais clareza o próprio pensamento de Eckhart e o todo de sua influência no pensar heideggeriano. Nossa tarefa se articula no âmbito da História da Filosofia e da Fenomenologia- Hermenêutica no sentido de extrair do pensamento de Caputo nuances novas sobre a Analítica Existencial e sua relação com a Tradição filosófica ocidental pelo viés da Negatividade

This paper attempts to mark out new ground in the connections between the philosophical writings of Martin Heidegger and Aristotle by posing an interesting question that has never been addressed. Both writers devote much of their early thoughts to questions concerning human beings' practical ways of understanding. However, in their later thoughts Heidegger and Aristotle suddenly seem to completely change the subject to ideal or transcendental ways of understanding. At first glance these ideal modes of human apprehension seem to have nothing to do with each other. Yet, Heidegger and Aristotle seem to have similar motives for turning away from the practical realm and towards a transcendental realm, and they seem to have similar outcomes. My investigation of their respective motives and outcomes has led me to believe that although there are some similarities that are thought provoking, they are not strong enough to conclude that Heidegger's later writings are connected to his recovery of Aristotelian ideas. Given that the core of Heidegger's early questions of Being can be interpreted as a retrieval of Aristotle, to be able to demarcate the point at which Heidegger ceases his attempts at this recovery may allow us to examine the differences in Heidegger's later thought concerning Being.

Cette thèse étudie le développement du concept de volonté dans l’œuvre de F.W.J.Schelling et la place que ce concept occupe dans son "système" philosophique. Elle aborde également la réception de cette question par Martin Heidegger. Dans cette recherche, nous poursuivons de manière systématique un double objectif. D’une part, nous nous attachons à montrer que le paradigme de la volonté occupe un rôle tout à fait central dans la philosophie de Schelling, dans la mesure où il s’inscrit, de manière décisive, contre la tradition kantienne et fichtéenne, tradition qu’il prolonge en la modifiant. Mais d’autre part, il s’agit également de mettre en évidence le fait que, tout comme Heidegger, Schelling donne aussi à voir l’ambivalence du paradigme de la volonté en valorisant les motifs qui à la fois le fondent et le relativisent – tels que l’amour, le ‘non-vouloir’ ou encore la "Gelassenheit". Alors que ce qui le rapproche systématiquement de Heidegger et de sa critique de la modernité fait ressortir l’actualité de Schelling, nous pouvons cependant aller au-delà de ce parallèle et prendre acte d’une "valeur ajoutée" de la réflexion schellingienne sur la volonté. / The dissertation examines the development of the concept of will in the work of F.W.J.Schelling and its systematic significance in his philosophical thinking. In addition, it treats the reception of Schelling’s thinking of will by Martin Heidegger. In this investigation, I pursue two objectives: on the one hand, I strive to show that the paradigm of will plays a central role in Schelling’s philosophy in that he further develops and differentiates it in a decisive way with respect to the tradition of Kant and Fichte. On the other hand, I emphasize that Schelling, much like Heidegger, reflects on the critical potential of the paradigm of will and asserts, as its corrective, motifs that found and relativize it – such as love, "unwillingness" and "Gelassenheit". Thus, while Schelling’s systematic proximity to Heidegger and his critique of modernity makes it possible to emphasize Schelling’s on going relevance, one can also recognize, beyond the similarities with Heidegger, the ‘added value’ of Schelling’s thinking of will.

Zugl.: Freiburg (Breisgau), Universiẗat, Diss., 2008.

In my thesis, I examine the relationship between modern technology and human autonomy from the philosophical perspective of Martin Heidegger. He argues that the essence of modern technology is the Gestell. Often translated as ‘enframing,’ the Gestell is a mode of revealing, or understanding, being, in which all beings are revealed as, or understood as, raw materials. By revealing all beings as raw materials, we eventually understand ourselves as raw materials. I argue that this undermines human autonomy, but, unlike Andrew Feenberg, I do not believe this process is irreversible from Heidegger’s perspective. I articulate the meaning of the Gestell as an historical claim and how it challenges human autonomy, but may never absolutely eradicate it. Contra Feenberg’s interpretation, I argue that Heidegger’s ontology, including the Gestell, provides a crucial ground for understanding how we might salvage autonomy in a culture increasingly dominated by modern technology. Specifically, by drawing on Heidegger’s conception of Gelassenheit, I suggest that salvaging human autonomy requires a calm acceptance and opening up to the challenge of modern technology. This is not, as Feenberg suggests, a passive acceptance of the eradication of human autonomy. Rather, this is the ontological ground that provides us with the possibility of salvaging autonomy. By opening us up to the essence of modern technology, we understand the contingency of the Gestell, its essentially ambiguous nature, and are granted with the freedom to subordinate its reign to other human values and modes of understanding being.

In this thesis attention is focused on two religious movements, Mysticism and Pietism, both of which made significant contributions toward the enrichment of the German language. The 14th century was the "golden age" of German Mysticism. For this reason special consideration is given to this period of history and to the three most prominent 14th century German mystics: Meister Eckhart, Johann Tauler, and Heinrich Seuse. In order to understand their struggle with the language a brief synopsis of mystic theology is given in particular their concept of how the unio mystica, the mystical union of the soul with God, can be realized. It is shown that in their attempts to “express the inexpressible” they employed several stylistic devices which greatly enhanced the language by expanding the vocabulary and exploiting the various possibilities of expression. Though separated by several centuries in time, Mysticism and Pietism shared a common bond. The late 17th century and early 18th century pietists were responsible for reviving the terminology of the mystics, and for helping incorporate their vocabulary into the German language. The religious lyric of Gerhard Tersteegen has been singled out as representative of the influence which pietism exerted on the German language. Tersteegen was greatly influenced by the 17th century quietists, who in turn were influenced by the mystics of the Middle Ages. His language bears a striking resemblance to that of Meister Eckhart. From the 18th century even down to the present his songs have struck a responsive chord in the hearts of German speaking people and have helped mold German religious thinking. One of the key words found repeatedly in the vocabulary of both the mystics and the pietists is the term Gelassenheit. I have, therefore, chosen this word as an example of the impact which Mysticism and Pietism have had on the language. As used by both the mystics and the pietists Gelassenheit meant “submissive acquiescence to the will of God”. In the course of time the word lost its religious connotation and acquired the meaning of “calmness, serenity, or inner tranquility” The importance of Gelassenheit is not so much the change in meaning, but the fact that it is still used in modern German thanks to the influence of the mystics and pietists.

<p>Anabaptiströrelsen som etablerades i Europa på 1500-talet var upphovet till många kristna samfund, bland annat mennoniterna. Jakob Amman grundade år 1693 amishrörelsen som är en utbrytargrupp från mennonitkyrkan. Under 1500- och 1600-talen fick amishanhängarna utstå kraftiga förföljelser, på grund av sina åsikter. Det ledde till att en stor emigration till Amerika ägde rum bland rörelsens anhängare. I dag påträffas amish i 22 av USA:s 52 stater. Amishkyrkan är organiserad i distrikt, varje distrikt är suveränt i förhållande till de övriga och omfattar ungefär 30-35 familjer. Varje distrikt har en biskop, två predikanter och en diakon. Biskopen är den som bestämmer i församlingen.</p><p>Amish lever efter guds anvisningar i bibeln. Det gör att medlemmarna lever väldigt enkelt. Teknologiska moderniteter som elektricitet, telefoner och bilar är förbjudet. Anhängarnas färdmedel är häst och vagn, som de skickligt manövrerar i trafiken. Anhängarna ser sitt arbete på gården som något glädjande. De är duktiga hantverkare, jordbrukare och hovslagare. Många försörjer sig med en mindre rörelse på gården där de säljer olika hemlagade saker. Mobila snickarteam bland männen är också vanligt.</p><p>Grunden till rörelsens tro är det tyska ordet Gelassenheit, som betyder underkastelse. Gelassenheit visar vilka attityder, värderingar, strukturer, symboler samt riter som är framträdande hos en person som präglas av Gelassenheit. Amishfolket har inte någon speciell kyrka utan har sina sammankomster i hemmen, varannan vecka. Tron regleras när det gäller praxis av Ordnung och när det gäller trosinnehåll av bibeln, Ordnung är grundstommen i det kristna livet och formandet av själva fromhetslivet. Amishrörelsens sakrament kan benämnas som livstidslöften och det är dopet, vigseln, kommunionen och ordinationen.</p>

Anabaptiströrelsen som etablerades i Europa på 1500-talet var upphovet till många kristna samfund, bland annat mennoniterna. Jakob Amman grundade år 1693 amishrörelsen som är en utbrytargrupp från mennonitkyrkan. Under 1500- och 1600-talen fick amishanhängarna utstå kraftiga förföljelser, på grund av sina åsikter. Det ledde till att en stor emigration till Amerika ägde rum bland rörelsens anhängare. I dag påträffas amish i 22 av USA:s 52 stater. Amishkyrkan är organiserad i distrikt, varje distrikt är suveränt i förhållande till de övriga och omfattar ungefär 30-35 familjer. Varje distrikt har en biskop, två predikanter och en diakon. Biskopen är den som bestämmer i församlingen. Amish lever efter guds anvisningar i bibeln. Det gör att medlemmarna lever väldigt enkelt. Teknologiska moderniteter som elektricitet, telefoner och bilar är förbjudet. Anhängarnas färdmedel är häst och vagn, som de skickligt manövrerar i trafiken. Anhängarna ser sitt arbete på gården som något glädjande. De är duktiga hantverkare, jordbrukare och hovslagare. Många försörjer sig med en mindre rörelse på gården där de säljer olika hemlagade saker. Mobila snickarteam bland männen är också vanligt. Grunden till rörelsens tro är det tyska ordet Gelassenheit, som betyder underkastelse. Gelassenheit visar vilka attityder, värderingar, strukturer, symboler samt riter som är framträdande hos en person som präglas av Gelassenheit. Amishfolket har inte någon speciell kyrka utan har sina sammankomster i hemmen, varannan vecka. Tron regleras när det gäller praxis av Ordnung och när det gäller trosinnehåll av bibeln, Ordnung är grundstommen i det kristna livet och formandet av själva fromhetslivet. Amishrörelsens sakrament kan benämnas som livstidslöften och det är dopet, vigseln, kommunionen och ordinationen.