Science—according to common understanding—is a system of rationality, justification, facts, and evidence, characterized by order, clarity, and unwavering progress. However, when we set out on the path of science, it soon becomes clear that the situation is quite different: Science sometimes presents itself as a space of questions without answers, of managing one’s own self and the uncertain; science shapes itself as a field of small and large defeats. Failure is no exception in this field, but a systemic part of everyday life—despite the widespread veni-vedi-vici narratives. This book is therefore dedicated to the banal self-evidence of failure in science, with the intention of illustrating that failure can have many causes and should not be equated with personal failure. Failure in university contexts does not usually manifest itself in great intensity, but rather in many small inconsistencies, inadequacies, misunderstandings, unequal expectations, etc.: For example, in the clumsy delivery of courses, committee meetings that get out of hand, publications that are not written, incomprehensible emails, but also—of (potentially) greater consequence—manuscripts that are not accepted for publication, not being considered in appointment procedures or being refused project funding. In academic contexts, failure remains unaddressed or is shamefully individualized. The institutionalized habitus is geared towards communicating success. However, this produces failure as the other side of the coin; the competitions staged as ‘highly competitive’ (especially for funding) mean countless failures as a side effect. Failure that is only partially personally attributable in view of the low reliability of selection procedures. In this respect, failure—based on the neopragmatist approach pursued here—is an expression of the fundamental contingency of the social and individual world. According to a neopragmatist understanding of failure, it is not the end of a story; in this sense, failure is rather the starting point for reflection and creative engagement with the creation of the self and its contextualization. Failure thus also becomes an opportunity to adjust expectations, to revise claims, and to negotiate new, contingent interpretations. What is central here is that failure does not lead to an interruption of the conversation, rendering redescriptions impossible.