Heidegger's Entire Philosophical Project is an Attempt to Overcome Nietzsche

 

Quite often, Nietzsche and Heidegger are put in the same breath, as though they were "on the same side," so to speak, and this "side" is often referred to as "existentialism" or some other silly name.

I think this is a completely wrongheaded way of thinking about things.

Not only does this kind of categorical thinking misunderstand Nietzsche, as I have argued before, but it also causes one to completely misunderstand Heidegger. Because Heidegger, by my reckoning, is not at all "on the same side" as Nietzsche - on the contrary, his entire philosophical project is an attempt to overcome Nietzsche.

Heidegger, by my reckoning, is a person who was brought up Catholic, and seriously considered joining the priesthood, and was even attended a Jesuit seminary, but then converted to Protestantism around the time he married Elfride (nee Petri), who was Protestant (apparently, they had two ceremonies, one Catholic, one Protestant, to appease both families.  But his conversion was not a shallow question of convenience, for he read and deeply considered the writings of Martin Luther, and in particular Luther's interpretation of the letters of Paul.  And his doubts concerning his childhood faith did not end there.  Over his early life, he gradually became exposed to more and more challenges to his traditional Catholic faith: Marxism, Judaism, Scientism, American-style materialistic culture, Japanese and other Eastern spirituality and culture, and so on.  Finally, Nietzsche represented, for Heidegger, the ultimate challenge to his childhood faith - not just the religion, but the entire worldview (Weltanschauung).  So Heidegger set about attempting to overcome Nietzsche.  To make a very long and complicated story short, Heidegger elaborated a gigantic philosophical scaffolding to defend the core of his (to use a very loaded term) spiritual being - though, in the process, precisely what was being defended changed its shape considerably from his childhood faith - no matter!  Heidegger remained, in his own peculiar way, quite pious.

It was in aid of this fundamental project that Heidegger employed the I-Know-You-Are-But-What-Am-I argument - really, against many of his perceived antagonists, including Marxism and scientism, but to really understand his argument one must understand how he used it against Nietzsche.  For one must understand that Nietzsche represented, for Heidegger, all of the antagonists rolled into one.  Heidegger admired Nietzsche as a worthy opponent, and knew that he could not defeat Nietzsche's arguments head-on, and so sought a subtle strategy, to sneak in, under the cover of politeness and respect, behind enemy lines, and seek out Nietzsche's hidden vulnerability.