Re: Heidegger and Marx

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> From: Iain Thomson[SMTP:ithomson@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
> Sent: 17 September 1995 14:11
> To: heidegger@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: Heidegger and Marx
>
> Iain Thompson writes of Heidegger's critique of Marx:
>
> Interestingly, it is after the sustained critique of Marx that
> Heidegger launches his final return to Parmenides (as providing
> access to being). On a superficial level this supports the idea
> that Heidegger has replaced Nietzsche with Marx in the history of
> being (in the twenty years since _What is Called Thinking_).
>
> I take this as a sign that Heidegger recognized, by the end of his
> life, the shortcomings of his Nietzsche interpretation.
>
> This seems to me to be an extravagant claim to make. Does Heidegger in =
> these transcripts explicitly counterpose his reading of Marx to that of =
> Nietzsche? As far as I know, Heidegger does not claim that Nietzsche is =
> the *last* nihilist, but rather the one who uniquely understood and =
> played out its *Vollendung*. The 1955/56 text Zur Seinsfrage (published =
> in English as The Question of Being, New York 1958) opens with a =
> discussion of nihilism, technology and Nietzsche in the context of a =
> reply to Ernst Juenger, in continuation of a whole discussion between =
> Juenger and Heidegger concerning the nature of Juenger's essay "The =
> Worker" (so that, in a sense, the question is at least raised of the =
> belonging together of themes to be taken under the general title of =
> nihilism). Heidegger also speaks, perhaps somewhat cryptically, of the =
> "movement of nihilism" (die Bewegung der Nihilismus) which I understand =
> to be a movement which may take a political character (though =
> nonetheless belonging to the twists and turns - *Zuwendung* - of =
> Being). This is confirmed when he says "In order that we may see =
> nihilism in the phase of its completion we must accompany its movement =
> in action ..."
>
> I have for some time interpeted the many cryptic references in Zur =
> Seinsfrage to mean that, at least by 1955/56, Heidegger understood both =
> Nazism and Marxist Communism (and, actually American-dominated =
> international capitalism) to belong together as part of the general, =
> european, movement of nihilism. If this is so, then the distinction =
> being made, that the critique of Marx supersedes or in some sense throws =
> into question the interpretation of Nietzsche is false, because Marx and =
> Nietzsche "hang together" *as* the unfolding (- entfaltet - a word =
> Heidegger uses in the context of the "movement of nhilism") of european =
> nihilism.
>
> My point is simply this - we must perhaps exercise a little caution in =
> seeking to make distinctions so sharply between the chraracters and =
> validities of the various critiques on Heidegger's many "ways". I =
> wonder if we should not detect sometimes a teasing humour in =
> counterposing one facet to another of the discussion of one thinker to =
> another in Heidegger's work. It was always die Wege, not der Weg.
>
> On a point of reference, can anyone remember where Heidegger discusses =
> why Marx is simply wrong - there is a reference which I cannot find, =
> where he discusses Marx's classic distinction between philosophy as =
> thinking and doing (ie philosophy must not simply think about the world, =
> the necessity is to change it). Heidegger's riposte is particularly =
> sharp, but I cannot find it.
>
> I hope some of this is of use.
>
> Laurence Hemming
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Laurence,

Thanks for the interesting comments. Let me respond to a few
things.
My final sentence was phrased provacatively, but not I think
in an extravagent way, given the rhetorical caution built into the
preceding sentence (where I was quite up front in acknowledging that
what I was saying proceeded on a superficial level!)
As for the 'ways' comments, I'm not sure I understand you. My only
point was that the place Heidegger earlier assigned to Nietzsche
seems to be filled more often in the final works by Marx. Unless
you are contesting this claim, then the question I hazarded an
explanation for would be 'why?' One answer, mine there, is that
Heidegger recognized that his placement of Nietzsche in the histopry
of being is deeply flawed. I say this as someone who has spent a
lot of time with Nietzsche's texts trying to substantiate
Heidegger's critique. (I also recognize the importance of
Heidegger's insights--though these are complex issues to go into
briefly).
If your reference to _The Question of Being_ *is* meant to
contest the claim that Heidegger increasingly replaces Nietzsche
with Marx in the history of being, there are a few problems with
that. First, the text was written by 1955, and so would not be
expected to have altered much from the _What Is Called Thinking_
lectures of 1951 & 1952. In those lectures it is, as I said in my
post, still Nietzsche who plays the role of the pinnacle of
nihilism (and notice that after a semester on Nietzsche Heidegger
launches into a semester on Parmenides! My point was that this
structure is repeated in 1973, with Marx and then Parmenides).
Second, and more importantly, even within the Seinsfrage we can
observe a certain tension in Heidegger's formulations as he attempts
to place Nietzsche with repect to the possible recovery from
nihilism. On p.87 Heidegger writes:

On what is the overcoming of nihilism based? On the restoration of
metaphysics. ...The zone of the critical line, that is, the locale
of the essence of complete nihilism, would accordingly have to be
sought where the essence of metaphysics unfolds [entfaltet] its most
extreme [aeussersten] possiblities and gathers itself together in
them. [the line I quoted from the Zaeringen seminar reads: mit
Marx ist die Position des aessersten Nihilism erreicht.] That takes
place where the will to will wills...

Contrasting this passage with those nearly twenty years later shows
pretty unequivically that Marx has taken the place previously
assigned Nietzsche. That is, again, cautiously phrased, because of
the tension in the text I referred to above. If one looks at p.49
(Seinsfrage) for example, one reads: "With the fulfillment of
nihilism only _begins_ the final phase of nihilism." This curious
phrasing leaves it open that Nietzsche fulfills nihilism, but that
Marx somehow reaches the position of the most extreme nihilism after
Nietzsche fulfills it. I take it that man as labour-power
represents the pinnacle of the subjectivism and metaphysics of will
expressed in Nietzsche. But since Marx is discussed (in 73) in
terms of the metaphysical assumption of his thinking, the
hermeneutically ungerous place Heidegger had earlier assigned
Nietzsche needs some attenuation (minimally). It is interesting to
note that in both places (Seinsfrage and Zaeringen Seminar)
Heidegger supports his reading of the most extreme representative of
nihilism (be it Nietzsche or Marx) with an argument that neither
escape the Hegelian metaphysics of spirit.

Iain Thomson
UCSD Philosophy









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