The violence in learning

Abstract

This paper argues that learning is inherently violent. It examines the way in which Heidegger uses - and refrains from using - the concept in his account of Dasein. Heidegger explicitly discussed 'learning' in 1951 and he used of the word in several contexts. Although he confines his use of 'learning' to the ontic side of the ontic-ontological divide, there are aspects of what he says that open the door to an ontological analogue of the ontic learning. In this discussion it emerges that what precludes 'learning' behaving as does 'willing', 'waiting' and 'thanking', is something that derives from the relatedness of Dasein. The paper finally examines violence within the disclosure of truth. The approach to the investigation is experimental and is to some extent modeled on Heidegger's own later enquires.