Being and Time

The translation is the same as the original M&R hardback of 1962 but with a new forward by noted Heidegger scholar, [a:Taylor Carman|178353|Taylor Carman|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1354053645p2/178353.jpg], added in 2008. Although short, this 21st century forward adds to the work by giving first-time readers a quick overview of some of the difficulties in reading Heidegger's Being and Time (in any language) and some of the hot-button words to be mindful of while reading it as well as setting the book within the historical scope of Heidegger's personal biography and relationship to the phenomenology of his teacher, [a:Edmund Husserl|180033|Edmund Husserl|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1241038858p2/180033.jpg]. Additionally this book is lighter and more easily packed for travel in the paperback format.

Though in truth it takes years of reading and re-reading to understand, once you do this book is a life changer. The Macquarrie & Robinson translation remains the definitive English translation of [a:Martin Heidegger|6191|Martin Heidegger|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1217243699p2/6191.jpg]'s Sein und Zeit. There are enough commentaries around, in particular [a:Hubert Dreyfus|30234|Hubert L. Dreyfus|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1330508777p2/30234.jpg]'s which offer good insight into the flaws of this translation which make Heidegger's meaning unrecognizable. Many of the commentaries and secondary works on Being and Time will refer to the standard pagination from this translation or the original German and therefore this translation, either in hardback or paperback is necessary for a serious study of Heidegger.

Brilliant. Scary. Poignant. Irrelevant. Only read the first 300 or so pages, as prof said, "It gets a bit Nazi-ish at the end." Still not sure if it was worth reading or not. Though I do find myself thinking often about some of his ideas. And I think it was helpful to see the roots of thought that led to existentialism, deconstructionism and postmodernism.