The Phenomenon of Life: Toward a Philosophical Biology (Northwestern University Studies in Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy)

xxiv, 303 pp. With a foreword by Lawrence Vogel. A classic of phenomenology and existentialism, The Phenomenon of Life sets forth a systematic and comprehensive philosophy—an existential interpretation of biological facts laid out in support of his claim that the mind is prefigured throughout organic existence. Hans Jonas shows how life-forms present themselves on an ascending scale of perception and freedom of action, a scale reaching its apex in a human being's capacity for thought and morally responsible behavior.