Natality and Finitude [Paperback]

Philosophers are accustomed to thinking about human existence as finite and deathbound. Anne O'Byrne focuses instead on birth as a way to make sense of being alive. Building on the work of Heidegger, Dilthey, Arendt, and Nancy, O'Byrne discusses how the world becomes ours and how meaning emerges from our relations to generations past and to come. Themes such as creation, time, inheritance, birth and action, embodiment, biological determinism, and cloning anchor this sensitive and powerful analysis. O'Byrne's thinking advances and deepens important discussions at the intersections of feminism, continental philosophy, philosophy of religion, and social and political thought.

The relevance of this bookto crucial debates in continental thought, feminism, and political philosophycannot be over-emphasized. O'Byrne is particularly generous to her colleagues; the text so brims with references to secondary literature that outline the major sources of input to the discussion. The endnotes point to lines of further research. The prose is generally clear, engaging, and insightful. This work shound not be overlooked. 1/26/2011With great clarity and depth, Anne OByrnes new book, Natality and Finitude,explores a wide variety of themes, including birth, life, death, temporality, history,embodiment and reproduction. While OByrne never loses sight of the importanceof identifying and exploring these themes as they occur throughout the Westernphilosophical tradition, her arguments are guided by the recent work on natality andfinitude by Martin Heidegger, Wilhelm Dilthey, Hannah Arendt, and Jean-LucNancy.

Anne OByrne is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Stony Brook University.

Acknowledgments
List of Abbreviations
1. Introduction: Sophocles' Wisdom
2. Historicity and the Metaphysics of Existence: Heidegger
3. Generating Life, Generating Meaning: Dilthey
4. Philosophy and Action: Arendt
5. On the Threshold of Finitude: Nancy
Afterword: What Woul(