Martin Heidegger /

Although Martin Heidegger seems to be most often remembered today for his collaboration with the Nazis, his revolutionary philosophical ideas provide the seeds for the postmodern philosophies of thinkers as diverse as Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, and Hans Georg Gadamer. While most studies of Heidegger focus on the philosophy of Being (Dasein) he espoused in the monumental Being and Time, Clark (The Theory of Inspiration) offers the first study of Heidegger's philosophy of language and literature. Through a close reading of Heidegger's famous lecture, "The Origin of the Work of Art," and his "elucidations" on the German Romantic poet Helderlin, Clark demonstrates that poetry resists the domination and control of traditional metaphysics, opening up its own space for knowing the world and being in it. Clark nimbly explains Heidegger's difficult philosophical concepts with a series of boxed illustrations and chapter summaries. In spite of Clark's efforts, though, his book requires some previous acquaintance with Heidegger, postmodernity, literary criticism, and philosophy. Since the book is narrowly focused, only academic libraries and public libraries that serve a large college population should purchase it. For public libraries, Rediger Safranski's Martin Heidegger: Between Good and Evil (LJ 3/15/98) remains the standard study. Henry L. Carrigan Jr., Lancaster, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.