The Selfish Nous of Dasein - The Being Who Thinks-in-Time

Abstract

This is a conceptual paper that addresses Dasein^[1], the being-who-thinks, and his existence and essence in a temporal continuum of past, present, and future. It argues that Dasein’s nous is primarily self-interested (even when seeming to act altruistically) in order to maintain his own greatest good. In this context, Dasein can cloak selfish behavior - that manifests intentionally in sly, cunning and hypocritical conduct and unintentionally in illusions, fantasies, and delusions. In this way, Dasein is perpetually reconstructing events which keeps him emmeshed within a false, inauthentic persona of his own creation. The ever-evolving storyline, impacts Dasein’s present. In this way, Dasein iteratively spins for himself and, at the same time, shows the external world, a false, inauthentic self.

[1] Heidegger, M. (1927) Being in Time, 1927 (in German) 1962: SCM Press 1996