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.