Davis: wollen

The verb wollen   can be translated as “to want” or “to will.” While “to want” would in many cases be a more colloquial rendering, in this context wollen is translated as “to will” in order to indicate the problem of willing and the paradoxical tension of “willing non-willing” that is at issue. For example, even though “what do you want in our conversation” would be a more idiomatic and less awkward translation of “was wollen Sie bei   unserem Gespräch  ” than is “what do you will in our conversation,” the latter is more appropriate here since it is precisely the problem of “willing” (das Wollen) that is at issue.