Hans-Georg Gadamer (; ; February 11, 1900 – March 13, 2002) was a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
philosopher
A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...
of the
continental tradition
Continental philosophy is a term used to describe some philosophers and philosophical traditions that do not fall under the umbrella of analytic philosophy. However, there is no academic consensus on the definition of continental philosophy. Pri ...
, best known for his 1960 ''
magnum opus'', ''
Truth and Method'' (''Wahrheit und Methode''), on
hermeneutics
Hermeneutics () is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts. Hermeneutics is more than interpretative principles or methods used when immediate c ...
.
Life
Family and early life
Gadamer was born in
Marburg
Marburg ( or ) is a university town in the German federal state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district (''Landkreis''). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has a population of approximate ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, the son of Johannes Gadamer (1867–1928), a pharmaceutical
chemistry
Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...
professor who later also served as the
rector of the
University of Marburg. He was raised a Protestant Christian. Gadamer resisted his father's urging to take up the
natural sciences
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...
and became more and more interested in the
humanities
Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...
. His mother, Emma Karoline Johanna Geiese (1869–1904) died of
diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...
while Hans-Georg was four years old, and he later noted that this may have had an effect on his decision to not pursue scientific studies.
Jean Grondin
Jean Grondin (born August 27, 1955) is a Canadian philosopher and professor. He is a specialist in the thought of Immanuel Kant, Hans-Georg Gadamer, and Martin Heidegger. His research focuses on hermeneutics, phenomenology, German classical philos ...
describes Gadamer as finding in his mother "a poetic and almost religious counterpart to the iron fist of his father". Gadamer did not serve during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
for reasons of ill health and similarly was exempted from serving during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
due to
polio
Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...
.
Education
He later studied classics and
philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
in the
University of Breslau under
Richard Hönigswald, but soon moved back to the University of Marburg to study with the
Neo-Kantian philosophers
Paul Natorp
Paul Gerhard Natorp (24 January 1854 – 17 August 1924) was a German philosopher and educationalist, considered one of the co-founders of the Marburg school of neo-Kantianism. He was known as an authority on Plato.
Biography
Paul Natorp was b ...
(his
doctoral thesis advisor) and
Nicolai Hartmann
Paul Nicolai Hartmann (; 20 February 1882 – 9 October 1950) was a Baltic German philosopher. He is regarded as a key representative of critical realism and as one of the most important twentieth-century metaphysicians.
Biography
Hartmann was ...
. He defended his
dissertation ''The Essence of Pleasure in Plato's Dialogues'' () in 1922.
Shortly thereafter, Gadamer moved to
Freiburg University and began studying with
Martin Heidegger
Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th centur ...
, who was then a promising young scholar who had not yet received a professorship. He became close to Heidegger, and when Heidegger received a position at
Marburg
Marburg ( or ) is a university town in the German federal state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district (''Landkreis''). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has a population of approximate ...
, Gadamer followed him there, where he became one of a group of students such as
Leo Strauss
Leo Strauss (, ; September 20, 1899 – October 18, 1973) was a German-American political philosopher who specialized in classical political philosophy. Born in Germany to Jewish parents, Strauss later emigrated from Germany to the United States. ...
,
Karl Löwith
Karl Löwith (9 January 1897 – 26 May 1973) was a German philosopher in the phenomenological tradition. A student of Husserl and Heidegger, he was one of the most prolific German philosophers of the twentieth century.
He is known for his two ...
, and
Hannah Arendt
Hannah Arendt (, , ; 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a political philosopher, author, and Holocaust survivor. She is widely considered to be one of the most influential political theorists of the 20th century.
Arendt was born ...
. It was Heidegger's influence that gave Gadamer's thought its distinctive cast and led him away from the earlier neo-Kantian influences of Natorp and Hartmann. Gadamer studied Aristotle both under
Edmund Husserl
, thesis1_title = Beiträge zur Variationsrechnung (Contributions to the Calculus of Variations)
, thesis1_url = https://fedora.phaidra.univie.ac.at/fedora/get/o:58535/bdef:Book/view
, thesis1_year = 1883
, thesis2_title ...
and under Heidegger.
Early career
Gadamer
habilitated
Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...
in 1929 and spent most of the early 1930s lecturing in Marburg. Unlike Heidegger, who joined the
Nazi Party
The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...
in May 1933 and continued as a member until the party was dissolved following World War II, Gadamer was silent on
Nazism
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
, and he was not politically active during
Nazi rule. Gadamer did not join the Nazis, and he did not serve in the army because of the polio he had contracted in 1922. He joined the
National Socialist Teachers League in August 1933.
In 1933 Gadamer signed the ''
''.
In April 1937 he became a temporary professor at Marburg, then in 1938 he received a professorship at
Leipzig University. From an ''
SS''-point of view Gadamer was classified as neither supportive nor disapproving in the "''SD-Dossiers über Philosophie-Professoren"'' (i.e. SD-files concerning philosophy professors) that were set up by the
''SS''-Security-Service (SD). In 1946, he was found by the American occupation forces to be untainted by Nazism and named rector of the university.
The level of Gadamer's involvement with the Nazis has been disputed in the works of
Richard Wolin
Richard Wolin (born 1952) is an American intellectual historian who writes on 20th Century European philosophy, particularly German philosopher Martin Heidegger and the group of thinkers known collectively as the Frankfurt School.
Life
Wolin gr ...
and Teresa Orozco. Orozco alleges, with reference to Gadamer's published works, that Gadamer had supported the Nazis more than scholars had supposed. Gadamer scholars have rejected these assertions:
Jean Grondin
Jean Grondin (born August 27, 1955) is a Canadian philosopher and professor. He is a specialist in the thought of Immanuel Kant, Hans-Georg Gadamer, and Martin Heidegger. His research focuses on hermeneutics, phenomenology, German classical philos ...
has said that Orozco is engaged in a "witch-hunt" while
Donatella Di Cesare
Donatella Ester Di Cesare (Rome, 29 April 1956) is an Italian political philosopher, essayist, and editorialist. She currently serves as professor of theoretical philosophy at the Sapienza University of Rome. Di Cesare collaborates with various I ...
said that "the archival material on which Orozco bases her argument is actually quite negligible". Cesare and Grondin have argued that there is no trace of
antisemitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
in Gadamer's work, and that Gadamer maintained friendships with Jews and provided shelter for nearly two years for the philosopher
Jacob Klein in 1933 and 1934. Gadamer also reduced his contact with Heidegger during the Nazi era.
At Heidelberg
Communist
East Germany
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
was no more to Gadamer's liking than
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
, and he left for West Germany, accepting first a position in
Goethe University Frankfurt
Goethe University (german: link=no, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main) is a university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university, which means it was founded and funded by the wealt ...
and then the succession of
Karl Jaspers
Karl Theodor Jaspers (, ; 23 February 1883 – 26 February 1969) was a German-Swiss psychiatrist and philosopher who had a strong influence on modern theology, psychiatry, and philosophy. After being trained in and practicing psychiatry, Jasper ...
in the
University of Heidelberg
}
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...
in 1949. He remained in this position, as emeritus, until his death in 2002 at the age of 102.
He was also an Editorial Advisor of the journal
Dionysius
The name Dionysius (; el, Διονύσιος ''Dionysios'', "of Dionysus"; la, Dionysius) was common in classical and post-classical times. Etymologically it is a nominalized adjective formed with a -ios suffix from the stem Dionys- of the name ...
. It was during this time that he completed his ''
magnum opus'', ''Truth and Method'' (1960), and engaged in his famous debate with
Jürgen Habermas
Jürgen Habermas (, ; ; born 18 June 1929) is a German social theorist in the tradition of critical theory and pragmatism. His work addresses communicative rationality and the public sphere.
Associated with the Frankfurt School, Habermas's wor ...
over the possibility of transcending history and culture in order to find a truly objective position from which to critique society. The debate was inconclusive, but marked the beginning of warm relations between the two men. It was Gadamer who secured Habermas's first professorship in the University of Heidelberg.
In 1968, Gadamer invited
Tomonobu Imamichi
was a Japanese philosopher who studied Chinese philosophy.
Life
Imamichi taught in Europe (Paris and Germany) as well as in Japan (he was also emeritus professor of the University of Palermo). Beginning in 1979 he was the president of the '' Ce ...
for lectures at Heidelberg, but their relationship became very cool after Imamichi alleged that Heidegger had taken his concept of ''
Dasein
''Dasein'' () (sometimes spelled as Da-sein) is the German word for 'existence'. It is a fundamental concept in the existential philosophy of Martin Heidegger. Heidegger uses the expression ''Dasein'' to refer to the experience of being that is p ...
'' out of
Okakura Kakuzo's concept of ''das in-der-Welt-sein'' (to be in the
being in the world) expressed in ''
The Book of Tea
''A Japanese Harmony of Art, Culture, and the Simple Life'' (1906) by Okakura Kakuzō (1906) is a long essay linking the role of ''chadō'' (''teaism'') to the aesthetic and cultural aspects of Japanese life and protesting Western caricatures of ...
'', which Imamichi's teacher had offered to Heidegger in 1919, after having followed lessons with him the year before.
Imamichi and Gadamer renewed contact four years later during an international congress.
In 1981, Gadamer attempted to engage with
Jacques Derrida
Jacques Derrida (; ; born Jackie Élie Derrida; See also . 15 July 1930 – 9 October 2004) was an Algerian-born French philosopher. He developed the philosophy of deconstruction, which he utilized in numerous texts, and which was developed t ...
at a conference in Paris but it proved less enlightening because the two thinkers had little in common. A last meeting between Gadamer and Derrida was held at the Stift of Heidelberg in July 2001, coordinated by Derrida's students Joseph Cohen and Raphael Zagury-Orly. This meeting marked, in many ways, a turn in their philosophical encounter. After Gadamer's death, Derrida called their failure to find common ground one of the worst debacles of his life and expressed, in the main obituary for Gadamer, his great personal and philosophical respect.
Richard J. Bernstein
Richard Jacob Bernstein (May 14, 1932 – July 4, 2022) was an American philosopher who taught for many years at Haverford College and then at The New School for Social Research, where he was Vera List Professor of Philosophy. Bernstein wrote ...
said that "
genuine dialogue between Gadamer and Derrida has never taken place. This is a shame because there are crucial and consequential issues that arise between hermeneutics and deconstruction".
Honorary doctorates
Gadamer received honorary doctorates from the
University of Bamberg
The University of Bamberg (german: Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg) in Bamberg, Germany, specializes in the humanities, cultural studies, social sciences, economics, and applied computer science.
Campus
The university is mainly housed in ...
, the
University of Wrocław
, ''Schlesische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität zu Breslau'' (before 1945)
, free_label = Specialty programs
, free =
, colors = Blue
, website uni.wroc.pl
The University of Wrocław ( pl, Uniwersytet Wrocławski, U ...
,
Boston College
Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...
,
Charles University in Prague
Charles University ( cs, Univerzita Karlova, UK; la, Universitas Carolina; german: Karls-Universität), also known as Charles University in Prague or historically as the University of Prague ( la, Universitas Pragensis, links=no), is the oldest an ...
,
Hamilton College, the
University of Leipzig
Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...
, the
University of Marburg (1999) the
University of Ottawa,
Saint Petersburg State University
Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...
(2001), the
University of Tübingen
The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Wü ...
and
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington.
Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...
.
Death
On February 11, 2000, the
University of Heidelberg
}
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...
celebrated Gadamer's one hundredth birthday with a ceremony and conference. Gadamer's last academic engagement was in the summer of 2001 at an annual symposium on hermeneutics that two of Gadamer's American students had organised. On March 13, 2002, Gadamer died at Heidelberg's University Clinic at the age of 102. He is buried in the Köpfel cemetery in
Ziegelhausen
Heidelberg-Ziegelhausen is a residential district (of fourteen) at the eastern perimeter of the city of Heidelberg, Germany.
Ziegelhausen lies on the northern banks of the Neckar River and extends northward into the Odenwald Forest. It has a sma ...
.
Work
Philosophical hermeneutics and ''Truth and Method''
Gadamer's philosophical project, as explained in ''
Truth and Method'', was to elaborate on the concept of "
philosophical hermeneutics
Hermeneutics () is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of Biblical hermeneutics, biblical texts, wisdom literature, and Philosophy, philosophical texts. Hermeneutics is more than interpretative principles ...
", which Heidegger initiated but never dealt with at length. Gadamer's goal was to uncover the nature of human understanding. In ''Truth and Method'', Gadamer argued that "truth" and "method" were at odds with one another. For Gadamer, "the experience of art is exemplary in its provision of truths that are inaccessible by scientific methods, and this experience is projected to the whole domain of human sciences." He was critical of two approaches to the
human sciences (''
Geisteswissenschaften''). On the one hand, he was critical of modern approaches to humanities that modeled themselves on the natural sciences, which simply sought to “objectively” observe and analyze texts and art. On the other hand, he took issue with the traditional German approaches to the humanities, represented for instance by
Friedrich Schleiermacher
Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher (; 21 November 1768 – 12 February 1834) was a German Reformed theologian, philosopher, and biblical scholar known for his attempt to reconcile the criticisms of the Enlightenment with traditional P ...
and
Wilhelm Dilthey
Wilhelm Dilthey (; ; 19 November 1833 – 1 October 1911) was a German historian, psychologist, sociologist, and hermeneutic philosopher, who held G. W. F. Hegel's Chair in Philosophy at the University of Berlin. As a polymathic philosopher, w ...
, who believed that meaning, as an object, could be found within a text through a particular process that allowed for a connection with the author's thoughts that led to the creation of a text (Schleiermacher), or the situation that led to an expression of human inner life (Dilthey).
However, Gadamer argued meaning and understanding are not objects to be found through certain methods, but are inevitable phenomena. Hermeneutics is not a process in which an interpreter finds a particular meaning, but “a philosophical effort to account for understanding as an ontological—the ontological—process of man.” Thus, Gadamer is not giving a prescriptive method on how to understand, but rather he is working to examine how understanding, whether of texts, artwork, or experience, is possible at all. Gadamer intended ''Truth and Method'' to be a description of what we always do when we interpret things (even if we do not know it): "My real concern was and is philosophic: not what we do or what we ought to do, but what happens to us over and above our wanting and doing".
As a result of
Martin Heidegger
Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th centur ...
’s temporal analysis of human existence, Gadamer argued that people have a so-called historically-effected
consciousness
Consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience and awareness of internal and external existence. However, the lack of definitions has led to millennia of analyses, explanations and debates by philosophers, theologians, linguisticians, and scien ...
(''wirkungsgeschichtliches Bewußtsein''), and that they are embedded in the particular history and culture that shaped them. However the historical consciousness is not an object over and against our existence, but “a stream in which we move and participate, in every act of understanding.” Therefore, people do not come to any given thing without some form of preunderstanding established by this historical stream. The tradition in which an interpreter stands establishes "prejudices" that affect how he or she will make interpretations. For Gadamer, these prejudices are not something that hinders our ability to make interpretations, but are both integral to the reality of being, and “are the basis of our being able to understand history at all.” Gadamer criticized Enlightenment thinkers for harboring a "prejudice against prejudices".
For Gadamer, interpreting a text involves a
fusion of horizons
"Fusion of horizons" (german: Horizontverschmelzung) is a dialectical concept which results from the rejection of two alternatives: objectivism, whereby the objectification of the other is premised on the forgetting of oneself; and absolute knowled ...
(''Horizontverschmelzung''). Both the text and the interpreter find themselves within a particular historical tradition, or “horizon.” Each horizon is expressed through the medium of language, and both text and interpreter belong to and participate in history and language. This “belongingness” to language is the common ground between interpreter and text that makes understanding possible. As an interpreter seeks to understand a text, a common horizon emerges. This fusion of horizons does not mean the interpreter now fully understands some kind of objective meaning, but is “an event in which a world opens itself to him.” The result is a deeper understanding of the subject matter.
Gadamer further explains the hermeneutical experience as a dialogue. To justify this, he uses
Plato's dialogues as a model for how we are to engage with written texts. To be in conversation, one must take seriously “the truth claim of the person with whom one is conversing.” Further, each participant in the conversation relates to one another insofar as they belong to the common goal of understanding one another. Ultimately, for Gadamer, the most important dynamic of conversation as a model for the interpretation of a text is “the give-and-take of question and answer.” In other words, the interpretation of a given text will change depending on the questions the interpreter asks of the
text. The "meaning" emerges not as an object that lies in the text or in the interpreter, but rather an event that results from the interaction of the two.
''Truth and Method'' was published twice in English, and the revised edition is now considered authoritative. The German-language edition of Gadamer's Collected Works includes a volume in which Gadamer elaborates his argument and discusses the critical response to the book. Finally, Gadamer's essay on
Celan (entitled "Who Am I and Who Are You?") has been considered by many—including Heidegger and Gadamer himself—as a "second volume" or continuation of the argument in ''Truth and Method''.
Contributions to communication ethics
Gadamer's ''Truth and Method'' has become an authoritative work in the
communication ethics
''For definition, see Communication''
Communication Ethics is how a person uses language, media, journalism, and creates relationships that are guided by an individual's moral and values. These ethics consider being aware of the consequences of be ...
field, spawning several prominent ethics theories and guidelines. The most profound of these is the formulation of the dialogic coordinates, a standard set of prerequisite communication elements necessary for inciting dialogue. Adhering to Gadamer's theories regarding bias, communicators can better initiate dialogic transaction, allowing biases to merge and promote mutual understanding and learning.
[Communication Ethics Literacy: Dialogue and Difference Arnett, Harden Fritz & Bell, Los Angeles 2009]
Other works
Gadamer also added philosophical substance to the notion of human health. In ''The Enigma of Health'', Gadamer explored what it means to heal, as a patient and a provider. In this work the practice and art of medicine are thoroughly examined, as is the inevitability of any cure.
In addition to his work in hermeneutics, Gadamer is also well known for a long list of publications on Greek philosophy. Indeed, while ''Truth and Method'' became central to his later career, much of Gadamer's early life centered on studying Greek thinkers,
Plato
Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
and
Aristotle
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
specifically. In the Italian introduction to ''Truth and Method'', Gadamer said that his work on Greek philosophy was "the best and most original part" of his career. His book ''Plato's Dialectical Ethics'' looks at the ''
Philebus
The ''Philebus'' (; occasionally given as ''Philebos''; Greek: ) is a Socratic dialogue written in the 4th century BC by Plato. Besides Socrates (the main speaker) the other interlocutors are Philebus and Protarchus. Philebus, who advocates the ...
'' dialogue through the lens of
phenomenology
Phenomenology may refer to:
Art
* Phenomenology (architecture), based on the experience of building materials and their sensory properties
Philosophy
* Phenomenology (philosophy), a branch of philosophy which studies subjective experiences and a ...
and the philosophy of
Martin Heidegger
Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th centur ...
.
Prizes and awards
:1971:
Pour le Mérite
The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by Frederick the Great, King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Or ...
and the
:1972:
Great Cross of Merit with Star of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
:1979:
Sigmund Freud Prize for scientific prose and
Hegel Prize
:1986:
Karl Jaspers Prize
The Karl Jaspers Prize or Karl-Jaspers-Preis is a German philosophy award named after Karl Jaspers and awarded by the city of Heidelberg and the University of Heidelberg. It was first awarded in 1983 "for a scientific work of international sign ...
:1990: Great Cross of Merit with Star and Sash of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
:1993: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
:12 January 1996: appointed an honorary member of the
Saxon Academy of Sciences
The Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Leipzig (german: Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig) is an institute which was founded in 1846 under the name ''Royal Saxon Society for the Sciences'' (german: Königlich Sächsische G ...
in
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
Honorary doctorates
:1995:
University of Wrocław
, ''Schlesische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität zu Breslau'' (before 1945)
, free_label = Specialty programs
, free =
, colors = Blue
, website uni.wroc.pl
The University of Wrocław ( pl, Uniwersytet Wrocławski, U ...
:1996:
University of Leipzig
Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...
:1999:
Philipps-University Marburg
The Philipps University of Marburg (german: Philipps-Universität Marburg) was founded in 1527 by Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, which makes it one of Germany's oldest universities and the oldest still operating Protestant university in the worl ...
Bibliography
;Primary
*''
Truth and Method''. (1st English ed., 1975, trans. by W, Glen-Doepel, ed. by John Cumming and Garret Barden)
*''
Hegel's Dialectic: Five Hermeneutical Studies''. Trans. P. Christopher Smith. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1976.
*''
Dialogue and Dialectic: Eight Hermeneutical Studies on Plato''. Trans. and ed. by P. Christopher Smith. New Haven, CT:
Yale University Press
Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous.
, Yale Universi ...
, 1980.
*''
The Idea of the Good in Platonic-Aristotelian Philosophy
''The Idea of the Good in Platonic-Aristotelian Philosophy'' (german: Die Idee des Guten zwischen Plato und Aristoteles) is a 1978 book by the philosopher Hans-Georg Gadamer. P. Christopher Smith considers it among Gadamer's most important books, b ...
''. Trans.
P. Christopher Smith P. is an abbreviation or acronym that may refer to:
* Page (paper), where the abbreviation comes from Latin ''pagina''
* Paris Herbarium, at the ''Muséum national d'histoire naturelle''
* ''Pani'' (Polish), translating as Mrs.
* The ''Pacific Repo ...
. New Haven, CT: 1986.
*''
Gadamer on Celan: ‘Who Am I and Who Are You?’ and Other Essays''. By Hans-Georg Gadamer. Trans. and ed. Richard Heinemann and Bruce Krajewski. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 1997.
*''
Heidegger's Ways''. Trans. John W. Stanley. New York: SUNY Press, 1994.
*''
Literature and Philosophy in Dialogue: Essays in German Literary Theory''. Trans. Robert H. Paslick. New York: SUNY Press, 1993.
*''
Philosophical Apprenticeships
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
''. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1985 (Gadamer's memoirs, translated by Robert R. Sullivan.)
*''
The Enigma of Health: The Art of Healing in a Scientific Age''. Trans. John Gaiger and Richard Walker. Oxford: Polity Press, 1996.
*''
Philosophical Hermeneutics
Hermeneutics () is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of Biblical hermeneutics, biblical texts, wisdom literature, and Philosophy, philosophical texts. Hermeneutics is more than interpretative principles ...
''. Trans. and ed. by David Linge. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976.
*''
Plato's "Parmenides" and Its Influence''. ''
Dionysius
The name Dionysius (; el, Διονύσιος ''Dionysios'', "of Dionysus"; la, Dionysius) was common in classical and post-classical times. Etymologically it is a nominalized adjective formed with a -ios suffix from the stem Dionys- of the name ...
'', Volume VII (1983): 3-16
*''
Reason in the Age of Science
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, lang ...
''. Trans. by Frederick Lawrence. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1981.
*''
The Relevance of the Beautiful and Other Essays''. Trans. N. Walker. ed.
R. Bernasconi, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
*''
Praise of Theory
Praise as a form of social interaction expresses recognition, reassurance or admiration.
Praise is expressed verbally as well as by body language (facial expression and gestures).
Verbal praise consists of a positive evaluations of another's att ...
''. Trans. Chris Dawson. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998.
*''
The Gadamer Reader: A Bouquet of the Later Writings''. Ed. by
Richard E. Palmer
Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...
. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 2007.
;Secondary
* Arthos, John. ''The Inner Word in Gadamer's Hermeneutics.'' South Bend, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 2009.
* Cercel, Larisa (ed.)
''Übersetzung und Hermeneutik / Traduction et herméneutique'' Bucharest, Zeta Books, 2009, .
*
Davey, Nicholas. ''Unquiet Understanding: Gadamer's Philosophical Hermeneutics.'' New York: SUNY Press, 2007, .
*Davey, Nicholas. ''Unfinished Worlds. Hermeneutics, Aesthetics, and Gadamer.'' Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2013, .
* Dostal, Robert L. ed. ''The Cambridge Companion to Gadamer''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
* Drechsler, Wolfgang. ''Gadamer in Marburg''. Marburg: Blaues Schloss, 2013.
* Code, Lorraine. ed. ''Feminist Interpretations of Hans-Georg Gadamer''. University Park: Penn State Press, 2003.
* Coltman, Robert. ''The Language of Hermeneutics: Gadamer and Heidegger in Dialogue''. Albany: State University Press, 1998.
* Grondin, Jean. ''The Philosophy of Gadamer''. trans. Kathryn Plant. New York: McGill-Queens University Press, 2002.
* Grondin, Jean. ''Hans-Georg Gadamer: A Biography'' trans. Joel Weinsheimer. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2004.
* Kögler, Hans-Herbert. ''The Power of Dialogue: Critical Hermeneutics after Gadamer and Foucault'' trans. Paul Hendrickson. MIT Press, 1996.
* Krajewski, Bruce (ed.), ''Gadamer's Repercussions: Reconsidering Philosophical Hermeneutics''. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004.
* Lawn, Chris. ''Gadamer: A Guide for the Perplexed''. (Guides for the perplexed) London: Continuum, c2006.
* Malpas, Jeff, and Santiago Zabala (eds),''Consequences of Hermeneutics: Fifty Years after Truth and Method'', (Northwestern University Press, 2010).
* Malpas, Jeff, Ulrich Arnswald and Jens Kertscher (eds.). ''Gadamer's Century: Essays in Honour of Hans-Georg Gadamer''. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2002.
* Risser, James. ''Hermeneutics and the Voice of the other: Re-reading Gadamer's Philosophical Hermeneutics''. Albany: SUNY Press, 1997.
* Sullivan, Robert R., ''Political Hermeneutics, The Early Thinking of Hans-Georg Gadamer''. Univ. Park, Penn State Press,1989.
* Warnke, Georgia. "Gadamer: Hermeneutics, Tradition and Reason". Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1987.
* Weinsheimer, Joel. ''Gadamer's Hermeneutics: A Reading of "Truth and Method"''. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1985.
*
Wierciński, Andrzej. ''Gadamer’s Hermeneutics and the Art of Conversation'' Germany, Münster: LIT Verlag, 2011.
* Wright, Kathleen ed. ''Festivals of Interpretation: Essays on Hans-Georg Gadamer's Work''. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 1990.
* P. Della Pelle, ''La dimensione ontologica dell'etica in Hans-Georg Gadamer'', FrancoAngeli, Milano 2013.
* P. Della Pelle, ''La filosofia di Platone nell'interpretazione di Hans-Georg Gadamer'', Vita e Pensiero, Milano 2014.
See also
*
Gadamer–Derrida debate
__NOTOC__
The Gadamer–Derrida debate concerns the issue of the containment of otherness in Gadamer's hermeneutics and it began with an encounter between Hans-Georg Gadamer and Jacques Derrida in April 1981 in a Sorbonne conference in Paris on "Te ...
*
Limit situation A limit situation (german: Grenzsituation) is any of certain situations in which a human being is said to have differing experiences from those arising from ordinary situations.
The concept was developed by Karl Jaspers, who considered fright, guil ...
References
Citations
Works Cited
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External links
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Hans-Georg Gadamer Jeff Malpas
Jeff Malpas is an Australian philosopher and emeritus distinguished professor at the University of Tasmania in Hobart. Known internationally for his work across the analytic and continental traditions, Malpas is also at the forefront of contem ...
,
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
The ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (''SEP'') combines an online encyclopedia of philosophy with peer-reviewed publication of original papers in philosophy, freely accessible to Internet users. It is maintained by Stanford University. Eac ...
Hans-Georg Gadamer (1900—2002) Lauren Swayne Barthold
Lauren Swayne Barthold (born 1965) is an American philosopher and Philosophy Professor at Emerson College. Previously she was Associate Professor of Philosophy at Gordon College, with tenure, and has also taught at Haverford College, Siena Colle ...
,
Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
The ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (''IEP'') is a scholarly online encyclopedia, dealing with philosophy, philosophical topics, and philosophers. The IEP combines open access publication with peer reviewed publication of original pape ...
Gadamer's Hermeneutics(introductory lecture by Henk de Berg, 2015)
Hans-Georg Gadamer: Plato as portratist*Miguel Ángel Quintana Paz
"On Hermeneutical Ethics and Education" a paper on the relevance of Gadamer's Hermeneutics for our understanding of music, ethics and education in both.
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