Language and Hearing

Abstract

Abstract Chapter 4 provides a close reading of Heidegger’s “On the Essence of Language: The Metaphysics of Language and the Essencing of the Word” (1939), a seminar on Herder’s Treatise. From Heidegger’s obscure preparatory notes to the seminar (as well as his students’ notes), the chapter reconstructs his interpretation of Herder, focusing on the sense of hearing and its importance to language. This chapter not only discusses a text rarely considered in the literature about Herder but also points out what seems to be Herder’s profound influence on Heidegger’s later ideas. Along with hearing, another central topic is the exploration of the relationship between the internal and external which Heidegger discusses, following Herder, in terms of what he calls “the crossing-over,” a unique space between inside and outside, sounds and silence. This is the space in which, according to Heidegger, language and hearing reside.