Renaud Barbaras's, "De l'etre du phenomene: l'ontologie de Merleau-Ponty", published in 1991, is considered the most powerful and complete elaboration of Maurice Merleau-Ponty's thought to appear in recent years. Almost single-handedly, Barbaras has been responsible for reviving current interest in Merleau-Ponty's works. In the first English translation of this important and influential work, Ted Toadvine and Leonard Lawlor present Barbaras's rich and profound analysis of the history of Merleau-Ponty's philosophical development, from the "Phenomenology of Perception" to "The Visible and the Invisible". Toadvine and Lawlor's translation communicates the subtle thought of this important and influential work with accuracy and elegance. A translators' introduction situates Barbaras in the philosophical debate and develops his guiding insights into Merleau-Ponty's thought. "The Being of the Phenomenon" is certain to inspire new interpretations of Merleau-Pontian phenomenology and open European post-structuralist thought to further study.
