Young Heidegger and the Crisis of Theoretical Sciences

In this essay, at first, we will discuss Heidegger's notions on the main crisis of Western academy raised after the First World War. Heidegger thinks that such a crisis is the effect of ‘theoretical approach’, which dominates natural sciences, and its transmission to other disciplines. Secondly, the Heidegger's analysis on the basis of the theoretical approach is examined and we argue how a theory is primarily derived from de-vivification and formalization of ‘live situations’. These subjects can be studied by emphasis on the Freiburg 1919 lecture-courses. Young Heidegger believes that science is a live practice which is based on an existential encounter with the world. In this context, every scientific practice must be viewed and interpreted in its life-context. This theoretical encounter is originated from an ingenuous and pre-theoretical encounter. Drawing on a schematic figure, we will show how through a multi-levels process, the situational is transformed to the theoretical.