I forgot something in the last message.
I don't know if Ott's preface to the second edition is included in the
english translation, but in it he explains his motivations and the
title. The Unterwegs refers to the ongoing character of his examination,
as he waits, along with the rest of us, for material to come out. He
makes note that he has little background in philosophy and cannot judge
the philosophical merits of Heidegger's texts, so he doesn't try. It is
a limitation that any reader should keep in mind. His motivation comes
from the publication in 1983 of Heidegger's 1945 thoughts concerning his
time as rector and afterwards. Ott thought it was a hooey. Because
these thoughts deal little with Heidegger's work in philosophy, but serve
to explain and justify his practical dealings as rector, Ott has a
legitimate purpose to check on the veracity of Heidegger's
recollections. Ott takes on the addition task of finding the explanation
for Heidegger joining the Nazis, which he finds in Heidegger's increasing
opposition to the Catholic Church and sheer academic opportunism.
Ott has written a fairly normal biography of a man who happened to be the
most famous philosopher in Germany this century. Perhaps you think that
Heidegger cannot be evaluated by a normal biography, that his thinking
and texts exceeds the inadequacies of the man. Fair enough. I think
likewise. That does not disprove Ott's work or findings, it just means
that a better biography is waiting to be written. If that is your task,
good luck.
Chris
--- from list heidegger@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ---
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I don't know if Ott's preface to the second edition is included in the
english translation, but in it he explains his motivations and the
title. The Unterwegs refers to the ongoing character of his examination,
as he waits, along with the rest of us, for material to come out. He
makes note that he has little background in philosophy and cannot judge
the philosophical merits of Heidegger's texts, so he doesn't try. It is
a limitation that any reader should keep in mind. His motivation comes
from the publication in 1983 of Heidegger's 1945 thoughts concerning his
time as rector and afterwards. Ott thought it was a hooey. Because
these thoughts deal little with Heidegger's work in philosophy, but serve
to explain and justify his practical dealings as rector, Ott has a
legitimate purpose to check on the veracity of Heidegger's
recollections. Ott takes on the addition task of finding the explanation
for Heidegger joining the Nazis, which he finds in Heidegger's increasing
opposition to the Catholic Church and sheer academic opportunism.
Ott has written a fairly normal biography of a man who happened to be the
most famous philosopher in Germany this century. Perhaps you think that
Heidegger cannot be evaluated by a normal biography, that his thinking
and texts exceeds the inadequacies of the man. Fair enough. I think
likewise. That does not disprove Ott's work or findings, it just means
that a better biography is waiting to be written. If that is your task,
good luck.
Chris
--- from list heidegger@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ---
------------------