Heidegger and the Public Sphere

Martin Heidegger posited a fundamental contrast between genuine thinking and the realm of opinion of the public sphere. This conflict is expressed in Being and Time’s critique of the phenomenon of the “they” as an inappropriate setting for true philosophizing, and in the Letter on Humanism’s denunciation of Western metaphysics as based on a technification of thought. Exploring possible links between these ideas and Heidegger’s involvement with National Socialism can refine the discussion on the relationship between politics and philosophy in Heidegger’s thinking. Specifically, it can lead to the identification of an implicit notion of the political in Heidegger’s thought.