It's Not About the Gift

From Givenness to Loving

Anthony J. Steinbock

• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
• Year: 2018
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9798881872830
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Critical Theory

In his fascinating new book, leading phenomenologist Anthony Steinbock intervenes in contemporary debate around the idea of the gift through a set of critical readings in which he situates the gift in the context of interpersonal relations.

While taking up the key figures in the discussion (Heidegger, Derrida, Marion, Henry, Maimonides), Steinbock proposes the following: that these discussions of the gift are really not about the gift. He demonstrates, through critical interpretations and phenomenological analyses, how the gift only becomes meaningful in the context of interpersonal loving. The gift is not the point: "it's not about the gift". The gift becomes most fully what it is, following Maimonides, in participating with others toward their liberation. The point is the interpersonal relation of lover to beloved, which allows the gift to appear.

Table of contents

• Contents
• Introduction
• Chapter 1: Surprise, the Gift, and Humility
• Chapter 2: What Gives?
• Chapter 3: Overcoming Forgetfulness
• Chapter 4: The Poor Phenomenon
• Chapter 5: Resituating the Gift in Maimonides
• Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Author