Abstract

This dissertation, "Heidegger, Ethics and Interpretation," addresses the current topic of ethics in contemporary Continental philosophy. It does so by way of an exploration of Heidegger's early and middle work with particular emphasis placed on Being and Time, Introduction to Metaphysics , as well as "The Saying of Anaximander." In contrast to commentators who assert that Heidegger's work is inimicable to, and does not contain any resources for thinking through the ethical, I assert that despite Heidegger's political debacle that indeed his work does offer strong ethical resources. More specifically, I develop what I have called the "two-fold hermeneutic of empathy" found in Being and Time and relate it forward to what I am calling "etho-logical translation," an ethical resource found in the "Anaximander Fragment." The strong connection between the two also calls into question the strict notion of the "turn" taken in its strongest understanding. Lastly, this dissertation discusses Heidegger in relation to other contemporary Continental thinkers, again with specific regard for the ethical