We’ll be using the English translation by Anderson and Freund, based on the German printed version titled Gelassenheit. This translation appears in the book Discourse on Thinking (Harper Torchbooks, 1966).
An electronic version of this translation is available on beyng.com. You can also likely find PDF versions of the Memorial Address through a simple Google search.
For those who would like to follow along in the original German, this text can be found in volume 16 (Reden und andere Zeugnisse eines Lebensweges) of Heidegger’s collected works, his Gesamtausgabe—again, under the title Gelassenheit.
How to Read These Posts
Scope of Each Post
Each post in this series will walk through a small section of the text—typically just a few paragraphs (or less) at a time. To keep things clear, I’ll refer to paragraphs using the symbol (¶). For example, if a post covers paragraphs 1 through 6, I’ll write it as (¶1–6). This makes it easy to match my commentary with the original text.
Where possible, I’ll also note the page numbers from a common edition or PDF, so you can locate the passage more easily.
Format of the Walkthrough
These posts use a commentary format. Here’s how it works:
Each new section begins with a block quote showing the passage we’ll be focusing on. The first and last sentence of the passage are quoted. For instance, for the first 6 paragraphs of “Memorial Address”:
Let my first public word in my home town be a word of thanks.
…
Thus even a memorial address gives no assurance that we will think at a memorial celebration.
Because of copyright restrictions, I can’t reproduce the full text. So block quotes will often be abridged—you’ll see ellipses (…) where parts of the text have been omitted.
After the initial block quote, I’ll quote individual sentences or phrases for closer analysis, like this:
I thank my homeland for all that it has given me along the path of my life.
Then I’ll offer commentary to help unpack what’s going on.
How to Follow Along
I recommend keeping a copy of the original text open—either in another window or on your desk—so you can follow along more easily. The references to paragraph numbers and quoted phrases should help you stay oriented.
Don’t worry if the format feels unfamiliar at first. Once you’ve read a post or two, it should all fall into place.
What Version of “Memorial Address” will we use?
We’ll be using the English translation by Anderson and Freund, based on the German printed version titled Gelassenheit. This translation appears in the book Discourse on Thinking (Harper Torchbooks, 1966).
An electronic version of this translation is available on beyng.com. You can also likely find PDF versions of the Memorial Address through a simple Google search.
For those who would like to follow along in the original German, this text can be found in volume 16 (Reden und andere Zeugnisse eines Lebensweges) of Heidegger’s collected works, his Gesamtausgabe—again, under the title Gelassenheit.
Index of Posts in This Series
Below you’ll find a running list of all the posts in this series, each one walking through a short section of the text with commentary and explanation. The list will grow over time, so feel free to bookmark this page and check back as new entries are added.
Each title links directly to the post, and I’ve included the paragraph numbers covered to help you find your place in the original.
An introduction to who Heidegger was, why I chose “Memorial Address,” and what Heidegger’s later thought offers us today.
Heidegger’s opening remarks and how he begins to critique a culture of thoughtlessness by questioning what it means to truly remember.
Heidegger continues to develop the problem of thoughtlessness by pointing to its pervasiveness in our culture and lives. To illustrate this thoughtlessness, he uses the metaphor of an uncanny person following us around from one place to another.
Heidegger explains that thoughtlessness (in the sense he is using it) is not the absence of any thinking at all but the deficient usage of a higher capacity for thoughtfulness or philosophical thinking. He uses analogies to explain this, particularly that of a fallow field.
Heidegger explains that the origins of thoughtlessness lie in both an everyday flight from thoughtfulness and being swept up in the practical successes of modern science and technology.
Heidegger gives a summary presentation of calculative thought, the kind of deficient thinking that stands at the origin of a thoughtless manner of being in the world. He begins to contrast its unreflective nature with philosophical thoughtfulness, reflecting thinking.