Review by Choice Review
O'Byrne (Stony Brook Univ.) argues for a rethinking of finitude in terms of birth (or "natality") rather than the Heideggerian motifs of being-towards-death. Natality offers a positive way to understand finitude in terms of possibilities; this can be contrasted with Heidegger's emphasis on being-towards-death--the "possibility of my impossibility"--where finitude is principally understood as the exclusion of possibilities. O'Byrne's book moves in five chapters, with an afterword. The first chapter doubles as an introduction. Chapter 2 offers the author's discussion of Heidegger. Chapter 3, one of the most interesting ones, turns to the work of Dilthey, and argues that Heidegger's critiques of Dilthey can be answered by emphasizing natality in his work. Chapter 4 focuses on Hannah Arendt, who coined the term natality. Chapter 5 discusses natality and finitude in the work of French philosopher Jean-Luc Nancy. The afterword concludes the book with a discussion of natality and human cloning. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students and researchers/faculty. B. T. Harding Texas Woman's University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
