Play as Symbol of the World: And Other Writings (Studies in Continental Thought)

Eugen Fink is considered one of the clearest interpreters of phenomenology and was the preferred conversational partner of Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger. In Play as Symbol of the World, Fink offers an original phenomenology of play as he attempts to understand the world through the experience of play. He affirms the philosophical significance of play, why it is more than idle amusement, and reflects on the movement from "child's play" to "cosmic play." Well-known for its nontechnical, literary style, this skillful translation by Ian Alexander Moore and Christopher Turner invites engagement with Fink's philosophy of play and related writings on sports, festivals, and ancient cult practices. Series Page 3 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Table of Contents 6 Translators’ Introduction • Ian Alexander Moore and Christopher Turner 12 Oasis of Happiness: Thoughts toward an Ontology of Play {1957} 25 Play as Symbol of the World {1960} 44 Chapter One: Play as a Philosophical Problem 46 1. Play as a Possible and Worthy Topic for Philosophy 46 2. The World-Significance of Human Play 54 3. Methodological Considerations 63 4. The Position of the Human Being in the Centauresque Metaphysics of the West 72 5. The World as Play? An Approach in the Appearance of the Playworld 81 Chapter Two: The Metaphysical Interpretation of Play 91 6. The Non-Actual Character of Play 91 7. Play and the Other Regions of Human Life. Plato’s Blending of Being and Nothing 99 8. Plato’s Interpretation of Play by Way of the Mirror. His Critique of the Poets 108 9. The Lens of the Disenchanted. Critique of the Platonic Model of the Mirror 117 10. The Ontological Devaluation of Play at the Beginning of Metaphysics. The Problem of the Symbol 126 Chapter Three: The Interpretation of Play in Myth 136 11. Basic Features of Mythical Cult-Play 136 12. The Cultic Sense-Image and Its Veiled World-Reference. Association with Daemons 144 13. Cosmic Status of the Symbolism of Play—Ancient Belief in Daemons. The Enchantment of Masks 153 14. Sacred Technique, Cosmic Metaphor, Initiatory Enchantment. Transition to Cult-Play 162 15. Cult-Play as a Dissembling of the World-Relation. Play of the Gods and Play of the World 171 16. Play and Consecration—Cult-Play and Religion. The Play of the Gods Is Not Itself Cult-Play 180 17. Nature “Full of Gods” in Myth, Empty of Gods in Late Culture. Critique of Religion on the Model of “Self-Alienation.” The Question Concerning the Worldliness of Play Is neither Sacred nor Profane 189 Chapter Four: The Worldliness of Human Play 199 18. Polysemy of the Concept “Worldly” 199 19. The Worldliness of Play—In Contrast to the Metaphysical and Mythological Interpretation 208 20. Play as the Ecstase of the Human Being toward the World and as the Proof of the Shining Back of the World into the Being That Is Open to the World. The World as a Game without a Player 217 Play and Celebration {1975} 227 Additional Texts 236 Child’s Play {1959} 238 Play and Philosophy {1966} 240 The World-Significance of Play {1973} 245 Play and Cult {1972–1973?} 260 Fink’s Notes on Play 262 The Philosophical-Pedagogical Problem of Play, 1954 264 Sport Seminar on February 24, 1961 284 Play and Sport {1962} 286 Notes on “Play and Philosophy” {1966} 290 Notes on “The World-Significance of Play” {1973} 294 Appendices 304 The Layout of the Volume and Description of the Texts 306 German Editors’ Afterword 314 Bibliography of Fink’s Works Available in English • Prepared by Ian Alexander Moore and Christopher Turner 332 Secondary Literature on Fink in English • Prepared by Ian Alexander Moore and Christopher Turner 334 Notes 338 Name Index 358 About the Authors 360 Eugen Fink is considered one of the clearest interpreters of phenomenology and was the preferred conversational partner of Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger. In Play as Symbol of the World, Fink offers an original phenomenology of play as he attempts to understand the world through the experience of play. He affirms the philosophical significance of play, why it is more than idle amusement, and reflects on the movement from "child's play" to "cosmic play." Well-known for its non-technical, literary style, this skillful translation by Ian Alexander Moore and Christopher Turner invites engagement with Fink's philosophy of play and related writings on sports, festivals, and ancient cult practices. --Publisher description