Abstract
In order to overcome the limits given by the understanding of the finitude, which determines the ontological structure of the existence presented in Sein und Zeit, without leaving the context of Heidegger’s thought, it is possible to look on his Beiträge zur Philosophie, where we can find a radicalized exposition of the finitude. In this respect, Heidegger introduces the concept of being-away (Weg-sein) that functions as an internal opposite to being-there (Da-sein). Being-away which is closely related to the finitude of being-there includes not only the possibility of physical death, but also the possibility of mental burn-out. Being-away that is accompanied by a complete destruction of the self can thus throw some light on extreme states which mentally ill people try to evade at all costs. From the perspective of being-away, we can understand not only the dark regions of psychoses, but all the lifesaving maneuvers with the help of which the mentally ill react at the fundamental peril of the total self-disintegration.
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Notes
- 1.
Heidegger. Die Grundbegriffe der Metaphysik, 94–9.
- 2.
Heidegger. Die Grundbegriffe der Metaphysik, 95. English edition: Heidegger. The Foundational Concepts of Metaphysics, 63.
- 3.
Heidegger. Die Grundbegriffe der Metaphysik, 98. English edition: Heidegger. The Foundational Concepts of Metaphysics, 65.
- 4.
Heidegger. Die Grundbegriffe der Metaphysik, 95. English edition: Heidegger. The Foundational Concepts of Metaphysics, 63.
- 5.
Vetter, Helmuth. 1993. Es gibt keine unmittelbare Gesundheit des Geistes. Daseinsanalyse 10: 65–79.
- 6.
Heidegger. Die Grundbegriffe der Metaphysik, 531. English edition: Heidegger. The Foundational Concepts of Metaphysics, 365–6.
- 7.
Heidegger. Die Grundbegriffe der Metaphysik, 531. English edition: Heidegger. The Foundational Concepts of Metaphysics, 365–6.
- 8.
Heidegger, Martin. 1989. Beiträge zur Philosophie (vom Ereignis). Frankfurt am Mein: Vittorio Klostermann, 324. English edition: Heidegger, Martin. 1999. Contributions to Philosophy (From Enowning) (trans: Emad, Parvis, and Maly, Kenneth). Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 227.
- 9.
Cf. Ibid, p. 300.
- 10.
Heidegger. Beiträge zur Philosophie, 324 (meditation 202). English edition: Heidegger. Contributions to Philosophy, 227–8.
- 11.
Heidegger. Beiträge zur Philosophie, 204. English edition: Heidegger. Contributions to Philosophy, 143.
- 12.
Heidegger. Beiträge zur Philosophie, 285, 324–5.
- 13.
Heidegger. Beiträge zur Philosophie, 324.
- 14.
Heidegger. Beiträge zur Philosophie, 325.
- 15.
Boss. Grundriss der Medizin und der Psychologie, 353 (translator’s translation).
- 16.
Heidegger, Beiträge zur Philosophie, 303.
- 17.
Heidegger. Beiträge zur Philosophie, 320–1.
- 18.
Binswanger, Schizophrenie, 311. English edition: Binswanger, Ludwig. 1958, The Case of Ellen West: An Anthropological-Clinical Study. In Mendel, Werner M. (trans), Lyons, Joseph (trans) May, Rollo (ed), Angel, Ernest (ed), Ellenberger, Henri F. (ed). Existence: A new dimension in psychiatry and psychology. New York, NY, US: Basic Books, 288.
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Kouba, P. (2015). Mental Disorder and the Finitude of Being-There. In: The Phenomenon of Mental Disorder. Contributions To Phenomenology, vol 75. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10323-5_5
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