So, You Want to Understand Heidegger?

Here’s a brief reading list, from the more introductory to the more difficult, for those who want to understand Heidegger better. First, though, you might ask yourself, “Why should I study Heidegger?” Here is a list of reasons that stand out in my mind (and I’m sure more could be given):

1. Heidegger stands among the most prominent and important 20^th century philosophers (often coupled with Wittgenstein).
2. Heidegger has influenced many prominent thinkers in various fields:
   1. Psychology—Karl Jaspers, Jean-Paul Sartre, R.D. Laing, Rollo May, Medard Boss.
   2. Philosophy—Richard Rorty, Michel Foucault, Emmanuel Levinas.
   3. Hermeneutics—Rudolf Bultmann, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Jacques Derrida, Paul Ricoeur, Jürgen Habermas.
   4. Political Theory—Leo Strauss, Hannah Arendt.
   5. Anthropology—Clifford Geertz, Tim Ingold.
   6. Theology—Paul Tillich, Jean-Luc Marion, John D. Caputo.
3. Heidegger is a major figure in the phenomenological/humanistic tradition, which has had a profound effect on modern culture.
4. Heidegger’s thought, though difficult, is rewarding.

Given Heidegger’s widespread influence, anyone wishing to educate themselves in 20^th century thought can benefit from mining his philosophy. Furthermore, understanding what he was attempting to accomplish, including how his goals and conclusions differed from those whom he influenced, is important for gaining a richer understanding of how many contemporary schools of thought (hermeneutics, deconstruction, postmodernism, etc.) developed.

With that in mind, here is my list of secondary works for those who are interested in learning about Martin Heidegger’s thought, placing them in preferred reading order:

• Inwood, Michael, Heidegger: A Very Short Introduction (New York: Oxford University Press, 1997).
• Polt, Richard, Heidegger: An Introduction (New York: Cornell University Press, 1999).
• Mulhall, Stephen, Heidegger and Being and Time (New York: Routledge, 1996).
• Dreyfus, Hubert L., Being-in-the-World: A Commentary on Heidegger’s Being and Time, Division I (Cambridge: The MIT Press, 1991).
• Wrathall, Mark, How to Read Heidegger (W.W. Norton, 2006).
• Pattison, George, Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to the Later Heidegger (New York: Routledge, 2000).
• Young, Julian, Heidegger’s Later Philosophy (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002).
• Richardson, William J., Heidegger: Through Phenomenology to Thought (New York: Fordham University Press, 2003).

As you read through the above, I would suggest the following order for Heidegger’s own works:

• Heidegger, Martin, Basic Problems of Phenomenology, Albert Hofstadter, trans. (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1982).
• ..., Being and Time, John Macquarrie and Edward Robinson, trans. (New York: Harper & Row, 1962).
• Krell, David Farrell, ed., Martin Heidegger: Basic Writings (New York: HarperCollins, 1993).
• Heidegger, Martin, The Fundamental Concepts of Metaphysics: World, Finitude, Solitude, William McNeill and Nicholas Walker, trans. (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1995).
• Lovitt, William, ed. and trans., The Question Concerning Technology, and Other Essays (New York: Harper & Row, 1977).
• Hofstadter, Albert, trans., Poetry, Language, Thought (New York: Harper & Row, 1971).
• Heidegger, Martin, Introduction to Metaphysics, Gregory Fried and Richard Polt, trans. (New Haven, CN: Yale University Press, 2000).

After you’ve gotten your feet wet with Inwood, Polt, and Mulhall and Basic Problems and Being and Time, what you study next will depend on what facets of Heidegger’s thought interest you. You will find more difficult expositions of Heidegger’s thought in Dreyfus, Wrathall, and Richardson, Wrathall's being a good transition into Heidegger’s later thought and Pattison and Young’s works. Within Krell and Lovitt you will find works that range from the essence of art to the essence of science/technology. In Fundamental Concepts and you will be able to better see Heidegger’s “turn” (Kehre) to language and poetics in the early 1930s, as seen in Introduction to Metaphysics, The Question Concerning Technology, and Poetry, Language, Thought. With this foundation, you can become informed about Heidegger's thought and, if desired, you can continue through his later works and more difficult commentaries. Whatever reading you will do, you will see (and thus must keep in mind) Heidegger’s central concern: the “question of being.”

P.S. If anyone has any suggestions, corrections, or comments on this list either in terms of content or order, please let me know.