Phenomenology of surprise

Natalie Depraz

pp. 223-233

in: Thomas Nenon, Philip Blosser (eds), Advancing phenomenology, Berlin, Springer, 2010

Abstract

In an article that in my opinion constitutes an hapax on the contemporary horizon of phenomenology, Françoise Dastur raises this question: "[…] is the very idea of a phenomenology of surprise conceivable without absurdity?" Extending the project sketched by Dastur – "to discover the foundation of the phenomenology of surprise in [the] philosophies [of Husserl and Heidegger]" – I would like to undertake here an examination of the contributions of Merleau-Ponty and E. Levinas in light of the work initiated by Hans Jonas on the living being's experience of time, a line of investigation opened up in terms of the notions of risk and uncertainty.

Cited authors

Merleau-Ponty Maurice

Husserl Edmund

Heidegger Martin

Levinas Emmanuel

Dastur Françoise

Jonas Hans