Heidegger, Antigone, and Authenticity: The Challenge of a Practical Discourse

• In Event: Ancient and Medieval Connections to Modern Thought

Abstract

As scholars such as Kate Withy have noted, Heidegger calls only one person authentic in his corpus: Antigone. How should we conceive of Antigone’s authenticity, and what are its implications for politics and leadership? We begin by highlighting several ways it may be argued Antigone is authentic. Is she true to humanity by insisting on proper burial? What about a loyalty to family that cannot be defeated by death threats? Does she present a form of superior being by being so much more of a leader than Creon? Then, we move to consider how we could translate those visions of authenticity into a more practical and political form. Some scholars have compared Antigone directly to other moral figures and martyrs for a cause. Breaking from that tradition, this paper proposes that an intermediate step is needed to make such a comparison. Examining Heidegger’s discussion of how Antigone relates to the “call of being” is only part of that step. How is a response to being manifest in certain thoughts, actions, and practices? Why might we identify these as virtuous or heroic? And lastly, how is the present political and social order blind to what comprises authenticity? I hope to enable a conversation about how we can recover authenticity in ways beneficial to modern democracy.

Author

• Ashok Raj Karra, Odessa College