Given Life: The Phenomenology of Michel Henry Michelle Rebidoux Faculty of Religious Studies McGill University, Montreal August, 2007 A thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy © Michelle Rebidoux, 2007 Library and Bibliotheque et 1*1 Archives Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-50984-5 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-50984-5 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives and Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par Plntemet, prefer, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans loan, distribute and sell theses le monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, worldwide, for commercial or non­ sur support microforme, papier, electronique commercial purposes, in microform, et/ou autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. 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Canada Table of Contents Abstract Ill Resume IV Acknowledgments V Abbreviations VI Introduction 1 1 — (En)countering Heidegger 5 1.1— Heidegger's Critique: Being and beingness 6 1.2 — Descartes' Beginning: Videor 12 1.3 — Heidegger's Hesitation: Ereignis andAbgrund 23 1.4 — A Counter-Tradition: Life and the Unconscious 29 2 — Phenomenology and Givenness 46 2.1 —Husserl's "Principle of Principles": Gegebenheit 47 2.2 — Givenness as First Philosophy: Marion's 'saturated phenomenality' 58 2.3 —- The Transcendental Ego: Ideal Essence vs. Auto-affection 73 3 — Material Phenomenology 82 3.1 — Subjectivity and Objectivity: The Three Bodies 83 3.2 — Given Life: Passivity, Appropriation, and the Absolute 95 3.3 — The Problem of Forgetfulness: 'Impropriation' 107 4 — The Problem of Return 121 4.1 — Henry's Christianity: An Onto-theo-egology? 123 4.2 — The Problem of Language: The Word of Essence 138 4.3 — Henry's Ethics: 'Disimpropriation' and Action 152 II 5 — Phenomenology and 'the Call' 160 5.1—Marion's Critique: The'Pure Call' 162 5.2 — Levinas' Prophecy: 'The Other' and Diachrony 172 Conclusion: Loving in the Mystery 186 Bibliography 191 1 — Primary Sources — Writings by Michel Henry 191 2 — Secondary Sources 193 3 — Other Sources 199 Ill Abstract This study looks at the phenomenological work of 20th century French thinker Michel Henry (1922-2002). Not yet widely known to an English audience, his work has recently been attracting a growing readership among students of phenomenology as well as among those interested in the so-called 'return of religion' since the last quarter of the 20l century. For those interested in the relation of the phenomenological method to this return of religion, one of the main issues is how phenomenology itself is being (re)defined and expanded to address new modes of phenomenality, including what has been called by Henry and others 'invisible phenomenality'. Building upon a key insight of Husserl as established in his famous "principle of principles", Henry seeks to articulate this 'invisible' phenomenality—largely in response to the work of Heidegger—as the core of fundamental ontology. This study carefully considers the unfolding of this 'new phenomenology' in Henry's work in its various dimensions: in its situatedness within the Western philosophical tradition, especially in its relation to Heidegger's critique of onto-theology; in its dialogue with classic philosophies of the subject and its interior life; in its relation to the question of language and the problem of representation; with regards to ethics, the problem of intersubjectivity and contemporary philosophies of 'otherness'; and finally, in terms of its possible contribution to theological thinking today. Throughout a discussion of these dimensions of his work, certain implicit aspects of Henry's thinking will be made more clear by reading them through the work of contemporary phenomenologist Jean-Luc Marion, whose own work is admittedly heavily indebted to Henry, and whose own articulation and extension of Husserl's "principle of principles" plays a crucial role. IV Resume Cette etude porte sur l'oeuvre phenomenologique du penseur francais Michel Henry (1922-2002). Pas encore tres connue dans les pays anglophones, son oeuvre a recemment attire l'attention d'un nombre croissant d'etudiants et etudiantes interesses a la phenomenologie ainsi que d'autres preoccupes par un certain 'retour du religieux' depuis le milieu des annees 70. Pour quiconque s'interesse au rapport entre methode phenomenologique et retour du religieux, une des questions majeures concerne la (re)definition de la phenomenologie et son ouverture a de nouveaux modes de phenomenalite, incluant ce que Henry et d'autres ont appele 'phenomenalite invisible'. A partir de la vision centrale de Husserl proposee dans son celebre "principe des principes", Henry cherche a articuler cette phenomenalite invisible en grande partie en reponse a Heidegger et comme le coeur meme de l'ontologie fondamentale. La presente etude considere attentivement le developpement, par Henry, de cette 'nouvelle phenomenalite' dans ses diverses dimensions: sa position au sein de la tradition philosophique occidentale, particulierement sa relation avec la critique de l'onto- theologie par Heidegger; son dialogue avec les philosophies classiques du sujet et de la vie interieure; sa relation avec la question du langage et le probleme de la representation; son rapport a l'ethique, au probleme de l'intersubjectivite, et aux philosophies contemporaines de F'alterite'; et finalement sa contribution eventuelle a la theologie aujourd'hui. La discussion de ces divers aspects de son oeuvre font que certains d'entre eux sont plus facilement comprehensibles grace a la lecture du phenomenologiste contemporain Jean-Luc Marion dont l'oeuvre est consideree a bon droit comme largement influencee par Henry, et dont 1'articulation et le developpement du "principe des principes" de Husserl jouent un role capital. V Acknowledgements I wish to thank Maurice Boutin who, as my supervisor for my doctoral candidacy as well as for this study in particular, has provided over many months numerous critical suggestions on matters of content, keen insights into problems of translation and interpretation, and who has spent many hours of his time carefully reading and editing the writing to allow for greater clarity of expression. His support and encouragement is and has been much appreciated. I wish to thank my student colleagues and other professors in the Faculty of Religious Studies at McGill University who have also been a wonderful support to me in terms of their friendship, shared inspiration, and guidance, both in the academic community at large (such as at conferences) and in the very intimate community which we enjoy in the Birks building, the Faculty's home. I wish to thank Sharon Rebidoux, my mother, for not caring what I studied except that it would lead me in a direction which could help me to begin to form, to clarify, and ultimately to fulfill my life's dreams. Finally, I wish to thank my spiritual teacher, Sri Chinmoy, through whose blessings and inner guidance I first received myself as one called to seek and discover God, and through whose force of providential unfolding I first stumbled upon phenomenology as the appropriate method and language in which to begin to do so in the academic context. VI Abbreviations* AlTr— E. Levinas, Alterity and Transcendence, 1999. BaT— M. Heidegger, Being and Time, 1962. BeGi — J.-L. Marion, Being Given, 2002. BMECS — M. Eckhart, Breakthrough: Meister Eckhart's Creation Spirituality in New Translation, 1980. CPfE — M. Heidegger, Contributions to Philosophy (from Enowning), 1999. ENTO — E. Levinas, Entre Nous: Thinking-of-the-Other, 1998. EsM— M. Henry, The Essence of Manifestation, 1973. GA — M. Heidegger, Gesamtausgabe (GA Vol. 7, 1954; GA Vol. 14, 2007; GA Vol. 65, 1989) GeP — M. Henry, The Genealogy of Psychoanalysis, 1985. IaD — J.-L. Marion, The Idol and Distance, 2001. IAT— M. Henry, I Am the Truth, 2003. Id I— E. Husserl, Ideas Pertaining to a Pure Phenomenology and to a Phenomenological Philosophy, First Book, 1982. InEx — J.-L. Marion, In Excess, 2002. InPC — M. Henry, Incarnation: line philosophic de la chair, 2000. MHIBB — M. O'Sullivan, Michel Henry: Incarnation, Barbarism, and Belief, 2006. MPaL — M. Henry, "Material Phenomenology and Language (or, Pathos and Language)", 1999. NTR — E. Levinas, Nine Talmudic Readings, 1990. OBBE — E. Levinas, Otherwise than Being or Beyond Essence, 1998. VII OFPh — J.-L. Marion, "The Other First Philosophy and the Question of Givenness", 1999. OHY— W. Hankey, One Hundred Years ofNeo-Platonism in France, 2006. OWL — M. Heidegger, On the Way to Language, 1971. PdV— M. Henry, Phenomenologie de la vie (Tome IV), 2004. PUT—M. Heidegger, Poetry, Language, Thought, 1971. PPB — M.