The Mathematical in Heidegger and Badiou

This work traces the historical development ofsubjectivity from its skeptical foundation inDescartes to Alain Badiou's subject as fidelity totruth. Heidegger criticizes modernity defined asthe merging of the metaphysical and themathematical for apprehending the relationshipbetween man and world in only one way asthings. I hope show that this development does notderive from the mathematical alone but fromthe project of objects against an objectivebackground secured in an I-pole further advanced byKant's transcendental reflection of thething-in-itself over this project. I do this by followingAlain Badiou's assessment of Zermelo-Fraenkel'saxiomatic set theory a particular mathematical modelthat self-destructs meaning it cannot becomeabsolute or dogmatic. If we can dissociate in ourordinary language claims that utilize transcendentalreasoning from claims concerning mathematicalprojection based on speculation alone perhaps wemight find some basis to make existential claimsindependent of perspective or subjectivism.