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Name:
Hans-Georg Gadamer
Dates:
Born: February 11, 1900 in Marburg, Germany
Died: March 14, 2002
Specialization:
Hermeneutics
Philosophy of Technology
Philosophy of Medicine
Major Works:
Wahrheit und Methode, GrundzŸge einer philosophischen Hermaneutik (Truth and Method) (1960)
Platos Dialektische Ethik (Plato's Dialectical Ethic) (1968)
Philosophical Hermeneutics (1976)
Reason in the Age of Science (1983)
The Idea of the Good (1986)
The Relevance of the Beautiful (1986)
Über die Verborgenheit der Gesundheit (The Enigma of Health) (1995)
Biography:
Hans-Georg Gadamer's primary interest was hermeneutics - the study of the meaning
of a text. According to Gadamer, what a text means depends most fundamentally upon
two things: the historical situations of the author and that of the interpreter or reader.
This is an "existential encounter" between two perspectives and two sets of expectations,
something which makes any sort of interpretation possible in the first place. Reading and
interpreting is not simply a matter of becoming immersed in a text; rather, it also
involves a great deal of self-reflection and growing awareness of one's own mind and
situation.
Because of this, every reading becomes grounded in a unique context - after all, even though the author remains the same, every reader is unique. Thus, no single reading can be claimed as a definitive or final interpretation of the text and the result is a "virtual dialogue" that goes on for as long as there are books and readers.
Gadamer's Nazi and Communist Connections
Over time, Gadamer's actions while teaching under the Nazi and Communist regimes have
been called into question. Although Gadamer never actually joined the Nazi party, there
is no question that he benefited from their actions. Before they took control, he was little
noticed as a philosophy lecturer; after Jewish colleagues began to be dismissed, he quickly
moved into the positions they left vacant. In 1935 he even attended a Nazi indoctrination
camp - apparently because he realized that it would be beneficial to his career.
The Nazis, in turn, were able to make use of Gadamer. In 1941 they had him travel to occupied Paris to teach a course about German philosopher Johann Gottfried von Herder's interpretation of the Volk, an important Nazi concept, to French officers. Although Gadamer claimed to be apolitical and above the political strife around him, the Nazi government was able to make use of his intellectual prestige so long as he continued to do his work in a manner that was compatible with their racial and national agenda.
This pattern continued under Soviet rule. When communist forces took over Leipzig, where the American occupation had approved Gadamer's election as rector at the university, his lectures began to praise the dictatorship of the proletariat. All of this has led many critics to accuse Gadamer of crass opportunism - an effort to maintain an apolitical face to the world in order to remain in the good graces of whomever was in charge at the time. Supporters, however, contend that Gadamer was simply pragmatic. He did what he had to do in order to survive and keep on teaching philosophy to new generations of students.
All of this comes down to more fundamental questions about the role that teachers have in society - but in particular teachers who specialize in ideas, like philosophy. For some, that role is to stick with the realm of ideas and not get involved in practical matters like politics. Others, however, believe that philosophy divorced from daily life is meaningless; thus, it is necessary for philosophers to engage the issues of the day that face people in how they are to live. If that is true, then Gadamer's "pragmatic" acquiescence to both the Nazi and Communist governments represent not only a moral failing, but in fact a philosophical failing as well.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
Related Resources:
Biographies of Philosophers
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