Ontology and Action

This chapter transitions from the reading of Kant in Chap. 2 into the main thesis of my book by using the reading and critique of Kant to interpret the initial decisions Heidegger makes in Being and Time. It first argues that the critique of Kant goes beyond a mere correction and instead demands a complete rejection of the idea of cause and effect as the starting point for any consideration of freedom. This is due to the conception of being and time underpinning Kant’s conception of causation being in error. It leads to viewing being as something constantly present, something eternal and unchanging, with events being alterations in an underlying substance. Heidegger argues that the relationship between being and time itself needs to be investigated. It further argues that the arguments from The Essence of Human Freedom clarify the original project of Being and Time by clarifying the core arguments of Division 1 of Being and Time as a describing Dasein having a lack of freedom. It also interprets the more metaphysical parts of Division 1, concerning Dasein’s awareness of itself and ability to feel and understand, as inflected as a state of unfreedom.