Philosophers are accustomed to thinking about human existence as finite and deathbound. Anne O'Byrne focuses instead on birth as a way to make sense of being alive. Building on the work of Heidegger, Dilthey, Arendt, and Nancy, O'Byrne discusses how the world becomes ours and how meaning emerges from our relations to generations past and to come. Themes such as creation, time, inheritance, birth and action, embodiment, biological determinism, and cloning anchor this sensitive and powerful analysis. O'Byrne's thinking advances and deepens important discussions at the intersections of feminism, continental philosophy, philosophy of religion, and social and political thought.

Reorienting our approach to fundamental questions about human existence

About the Author

Anne O'Byrne is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Stony Brook University.

Reviews

With great clarity and depth, Anne O'Byrne's new book, Natality and Finitude, explores a wide variety of themes, including birth, life, death, temporality, history, embodiment and reproduction. While O'Byrne never loses sight of the importance of identifying and exploring these themes as they occur throughout the Western philosophical tradition, her arguments are guided by the recent work on natality and finitude by Martin Heidegger, Wilhelm Dilthey, Hannah Arendt, and Jean-Luc Nancy.

* Continental Philosophy Review *

O'Byrne argues for a rethinking of finitude in terms of birth (or 'natality') rather than the Heideggerian motifs of being-towards-death. Natality offers a positive way to understand finitude in terms of possibilities ... RecommendedVol. 48 No. 11 August 2011

* Choice *

The relevance of this book-to crucial debates in continental thought, feminism, and political philosophy-cannot be over-emphasized. O'Byrne is particularly generous to her colleagues; the text so brims with references to secondary literature that outline the major sources of input to the discussion. The endnotes point to lines of further research. The prose is generally clear, engaging, and insightful. This work shound not be overlooked. 1/26/2011

* Symposium, Canadian Journal for Continental Philosophy *



Book Information
ISBN 9780253222411
Author Anne O'Byrne
Format Paperback
Page Count 218
Imprint Indiana University Press
Publisher Indiana University Press
Weight(grams) 340g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 16mm