Tool Usage and Self-Carving in the Zhuangzi : A Heideggerian Perspective
Agnė Veisaitė
Journal of the British Society for Phenomenology December 4, 2025 DOI: 10.1080/00071773.2025.2597308 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Perspective graphical Phenomenology philosophy Interpretation philosophy Ontology Subjectivity Epistemology |
| Key points | Argues that the tool metaphor embedded in the character wo 我 reveals selfhood as constituted through tool-using activities, and that self-forgetting in skilled activities arises through dialogical attunement to non-human presence. |
Abstract
This paper examines tool-usage in the Zhuangzi through the lens of Heidegger’s philosophy of technology. Drawing on the ideography of wo 我 – commonly translated as “I” or “self”– I interpret wo as constitutive through its doings, particularly via the use of tools or equipment. The character wo 我 is derived from the radical for “hand” 手holding a dagger-axe 戈, which I address as a broader metaphor for tools. I argue that wo-self, like Heidegger’s Dasein, is situated within social roles and tool-bearing activities. By exploring the textual appearances of rectifying tools alongside the skill stories, I suggest that the tool metaphor embedded within wo-self can either reinforce inherited circumstances and social roles (ming 名/命), or serve as a means to cut through them. I further argue that self-forgetting in skilled activities arises not from absorption in action per se, but through dialogical attunement to non-human presence.