File spoon-archives/heidegger.archive/heidegger_1998/heidegger.9808, message 142


Date: Tue, 1 Sep 1998 00:09:15 +0200
Subject: Re: Suffering
From: artefact-AT-t-online.de (Michael Eldred)


Cologne, 01 September 1998 

Mike Staples schrieb:
> Michael,
>
> What do you hear in the word "Suffering"?
>
> Michael S.

The first thing I hear, Michael, is “patience” and then Gk. _pathein_ or 
_paschein_ (to suffer, to bear, admit, receive an impression, experience, 
tolerate). In Aristotle’s Metaphysics, Book Theta, in which _dynamis_ is 
investigated, there is a distinction and complementarity between _dynamis tou 
pathein_ and _dynamis tou poiein_, i.e. between power to bear or resist and 
power to do or bring forth. Thus e.g. a lump of clay has the “power” to bear 
being formed into a vase, whereas a piece of granite has the power to resist 
admitting such a transformation, both complementary to a power of _technae_ to 
knowingly bring forth a vase, cup or whatever. (cf. Theta 1, 1046a11-16). 

Aristotle thinks _dynamis_ as modes of being in relation to his prime 
understanding of being as _ousia_ (substance, presence-at-hand). This has to be 
thought totally anew in the context of Dasein, where _dynamis_ would translate 
as Seinkoennen, being-able-to. Dasein’s being-able-to is only possible by virtue 
of Dasein’s transcendence beyond beings to being which is at the same time the 
dimension of Dasein’s existing. Dasein transcends, i.e. goes beyond, beings by 
way of understanding them as such in the context of a possibility of its own 
existing, i.e. other beings, including other Dasein, are incorporated into and 
offer themselves as a possibility of Dasein’s existing. In such incorporation 
into a project of Dasein’s being-able-to exist in such-and-such a way, Dasein 
experiences the malleability and/or resistance of other beings, which either 
suffer incorporation, or stand up against it. 

Existing thus means encountering the resistance of other beings (cf. e.g. 
GA26:279) and also withstanding or admitting being modelled and manipulated by 
others’ projects. Standing out in the open (ek-sisting) thus also means standing 
against (re-sisting) and withstanding (bearing, standing). Being cast into the 
dimension of being’s openness means both freedom (being-able-to) and, 
concomitantly, having to take a stand, to withstand, having to stand (suffer, 
bear). 

This is a very rough, inadequate sketch to indicate how (Dasein’s) suffering has 
to be thought ontologically (not ontically) in relation to the standing-out 
(ex-sisting) into the Offenstaendigkeit (lit.: open-standingness, openness) of 
the truth of being. 

The “ontological suffering” I have indicated here has to be taken in a very 
broad sense something like passivity. Metaphysically speaking, humankind is 
impressionable to the impression of being, like Plato’s ideas as the outline of 
beings that is impressed on the soul. The suffering of Dasein in the world has 
to be seen in connection with the ontological resistance of the world Cf. e.g. 
SuZ Section 43 b): 

“Das ‘Wider’ und ‘Gegen’ sind in ihrer ontologischen Moeglichkeit durch das 
erschlossene In-der-Welt-sein getragen.” 

“’Counter’ and ‘against’ in their ontological possibility are borne by the 
opening of being-in-the-world.”. 

Michael
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-  artefact text and translation _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- made by art  _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
http://www.webcom.com/artefact/ _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ artefact-AT-t-online.de-_-_ 
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ Dr Michael Eldred -_-_-_
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