Nothing: The contradiction at the heart of being

Heidegger, Carnap and nothing

There has been much ado about nothingness amongst philosophers and mystics alike. Heidegger and Carnap famously argued fiercely about whether the ‘nothing nothings’ or whether this is meaningless, illogical, hogwash. Carnap though, in his later work, moved towards Heidegger’s perspective, and placed ‘the nothing’ beyond the clutches of logic. The ground of Being may well be a contradiction, argues Graham Priest.

 

In Being and Nothingness, Jean-Paul Sartre tells us a story.1 He has arranged to meet Pierre in a bar at 16.00. Pierre is always punctual. Jean-Paul arrives late. He enters the bar; Pierre is not there. At once Jean-Paul experiences his absence. He does not have to reason: ‘The things in the bar are: a table, a chair, Simone... Pierre is not a table; Pierre is not a chair; Pierre in not Simone;... Ergo Pierre is not in the bar.’ The absence of Pierre is immediate. He has a direct phenomenological awareness of an absence.

Continue reading

Enjoy unlimited access to the world's leading thinkers.

Start by exploring our subscription options or joining our mailing list today.

Start Free Trial

Already a subscriber? Log in

Latest Releases
Join the conversation

Russell Shaw 23 September 2024

Wow, this is such an intriguing topic! The whole debate around "nothingness" always gets me thinking. It's fascinating how something that seems so abstract and elusive can spark such deep philosophical arguments. I’ve always found Heidegger’s notion that “the nothing nothings” to be oddly poetic, even if a bit difficult to grasp.