Renaud Barbaras', "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' 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.