Heidegger's Theory Of Non Being

“Non-being” is the other philosophic notion that denotes either absence of something, or all things non-existent in reality, or non-existent reality. For Hegel the notion of non-being exists only on the surface of being (-in-itself). One reason Heidegger feels obliged to confront the problem of being and non-being is that Dasein. Nonbeing, in Heidegger, is the gateway to being. Stephney (1977) quotes Heidegger that “anxiety renders manifest Non-being.” (p. 327) He also states that “it is precisely this confrontation with nonbeing that allows Dasein to realize the awesome fact that beings exist: In the bright night of non-being of anxiety, there occurs for the first time the pristine openness of beings as such: that they are beings and not non-being.”

This understanding is said to be first disclosed to human beings through their practical encounters with things and other people, as well as through language. Therefore, for Heidegger being is shown to be intimately linked with temporality; the relationship between them is investigated by means of an analysis of human existence. He has raised explicitly the question concerning the “sense of being,” and believes that the crisis of Western civilization has traces in that everyone has “forgetfulness of being.” For Heidegger being is surrounded on all sides by nothingness, like a ball suspended in a void. So every being is said to be surrounded by little “pockets” of nothingness; in other words, nothingness is within being, for example, distance. (pp. 54–55) Thus, Heidegger argued that nothing is what shapes being generally. This reveals the most fundamental, transcendent reality, beyond all notions of what-is slipping over into what-is-not. Even in the historical tradition, according to Heidegger, nothing is shown to be the concomitant rather than the opposite of

Sartre offers the idea of wallet to clarify the notion of nothingness; he says when you look into your wallet expecting to find a certain amount of money, and finding that you have much less than expected. For instance, you expect to have 1500 francs but finding only 1300 francs. Here Sartre insists that it is also correctly described if we emphasize on seeing the absence of the expected 1500 (or 200). For Sartre you experience the absence of some cash. (p. 10) Then he goes on and gives another example of absence of Pierre from the café; it is described that they have an appointment with Pierre who is very punctual but due to a half hour delay he is gone. The full being of café is described with its patrons, its tables, its booths, its mirrors, its light, its smoky atmosphere, and the sounds of voices, rattling saucers, and footsteps “ I look at the room, the patrons, and I say, He is not here” (p. 11). Sartre emphasizes that the absence of Pierre is not just the case and it is correct to say that the experiencing of the absence of Pierre in the café is the matter. This is why Sartre claims nothingness to be the opposite of being in-itself: the nothingness we experience is dependent on our awareness. However, nothingness is an inseparable part of the world we experience. Sartre says “Nothingness can be nihilated only on the foundation of being; if nothingness can be given, it is neither