Gadamer's Hermeneutics

Robert J. Dostal is the Rufus M. Jones Professor of Philosophy at Bryn Mawr College. He is the editor of The Cambridge Companion to Gadamer.

• AcknowledgementsPreface1. Gadamers’s Ambivalence Toward the Enlightenment Project2. Humanism and Politics: Gadamer’s Humanism in the Face of Heidegger’s Anti-humanism3. Saving Plato from Platonism4. From Bildung to Bild: Gadamer’s Aesthetics5. Language and Understanding6. Hermeneutics and Science7. Between Phenomenology and Dialectic8. Concluding Remarks: The Conversation that We Are—SolidarityNotesBibliographyIndex

Robert J. Dostal has written an illuminating and compelling book on one of the most important philosophers of the twentieth century. He covers all the major topics in Gadamer’s work, providing not just clear and sensitive commentary, but a vigorous defense of Gadamer against both criticisms and misinterpretations. The book is destined to be a watershed in our understanding of hermeneutics as philosophy, as well as of Gadamer, especially his ‘civic humanism’ and his differences with his controversial teacher, Heidegger." —Robert B. Pippin, author of Philosophy by Other Means: The Arts in Philosophy and Philosophy in the Arts"The ripe fruit of a diligent, life-long dialogue with Gadamer, which began in 1969, this clearly written book succeeds in bringing out the civic humanism of Gadamer’s philosophy, its intellectual roots and its relevance for our times." —Jean Grondin, author of Hans-Georg Gadamer: A Biography"A tour de force! In this comprehensive study Dostal not only let us see how Gadamer was inspired by Heidegger, but also where their differences—philosophical and political—lie. He also sets Gadamer’s reappropriation of Plato and Aristotle, his aesthetics, and understanding of the central role of 'the word' in the context of contemporary discussions of language and phenomenology." —Catherine Zuckert, author of Postmodern Platos: Nietzsche, Heidegger, Gadamer, Strauss, Derrida