The category of belonging in Gabriel Marcel’s «An outline of a concrete philosophy»

Abstract

The article focuses on the category of belonging in the work «An outline of a concrete philosophy» by the French existentialist Gabriel Marcel. In its logic, this category precedes the well-known concepts of «being» and «having» which he developed in his book «Being and having», however it was introduced later than them. A subtle analysis of the category of belonging leads Marcel to conclusions about the ontological rootedness of a person along with creativity and freedom, faith, hope and love. These phenomena are not mere good wishes, but are part and parcel of human destiny and rise people from the sphere of mere existence to the sphere of being.