Martin Heidegger’s main goal in life was to answer the “question of Being,” which has been the focal point of his lifelong works and researches. This question of Being is a rather complex idea, where “Being” itself is a very complex aspect. In order to understand this concept of Being, it is necessary to first understand the human kind of being or what is known as “Dasein.” Dasein or “Being-there” is the type of Being which inquires about the question of Being. The answer that they are looking for can be derived from the question they are facing (Robbins, 1999).
This is to resort to ontology, which is the actual study of Being. This is through phemenology that revolves on the idea that lets a phenomena show itself from itself in the very way in which it shows itself from itself. However, there is one a way in which this is identified, where understanding this concept of beings is possible, and this is through the isness of beings, or the Being of beings, so that these beings can presence. The one that is responsible in the presencing by concealing and revealing of Being is Dasein (Robbins, 1999).
This is because of Heidegger’s firm belief that truth should always be about concealing and revealing. The discussion of a topic is closed when another discussion is being opened, as well as one interpretation is opened when another interpretation is closed off.
In Heidegger’s writings, Dasein is pictured as something uncanny, something which is of the nature of the human kind of Being. It is not-at-home as Being-in-the-world; it is not as itself as it is lost in the “they” – Dasein’s characteristic as being uncanny becomes covered up because it exists in its “average everydayness, even though it has “fallen” into the “they self. (Robbins, 1999)”
According to Heidegger, “falling” is the act of escaping, fleeing or turning away of Dasein, into its “they self,” yet this turning away is somewhat hampered by anxiety (Robbins, 1999). Anxiety has been the precursor of fear – it makes fear exist, makes it possible. However, anxiety is described as something which threatens nowhere and nothing, as compared to fear, which threatens other than Dasein. Anxiety doesn’t put any threat on Dasein, since it is not threatened by anything in particular, even a collection of objects which is nearby or at hand. Being-in-the-world, when faced with anxiety is also anxious, and as for anxiety, the world as world is disclosed, so that nobody can fall into it.
According to Heidegger, Being-in can be defined as residing alongside and Being-familiar with – where it gives a certain feeling of tranquilized self-assurance of the “they” as “Being-at-home.” But no matter how Dasein falls, it is eventually brought back from its absorption in the world and the everyday familiarity co9llapses. These creates another meaning for Being-in which is the “not-at-home: of uncanniness, so it is just the basic characteristic of Being of Dasein, even though Dasein from time to time escapes from this certain understanding regarding its at-homeness. However, the uncanniness that pursues on Dasein is rather different, this “they” is uncanny in that uncanniness lies in Dasein as thrown Being-in-the-world, which has been delivered to itself in its Being.
Daseign falls into fallenness because it is tempted into the lostness of das Man, which somewhat disburdens Dasein from having to face its ownmost potentiality-for-Being. Dasein compares everything around it which its ownmost potentiality-for-Being is hidden from it.
