Hans-Georg Gadamer
German philosopher of hermeneutics, author of Truth and Method
Hans-Georg Gadamer was a German philosopher of the continental tradition best known for his work on hermeneutics, including Truth and Method.[1]
Quick Facts
- Born
- 11 February 1900
- Birthplace
- Marburg, Province of Hesse-Nassau, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
- Died
- 13 March 2002
- Place of death
- Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
- Era
- 20th-century philosophy
- Region
- Western philosophy
- Alma mater
- University of Breslau; University of Marburg
- School of thought
- Continental philosophy
- Hermeneutics
- Ontological hermeneutics
- Hermeneutic phenomenology
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
Gadamer was the son of Johannes Gadamer, a pharmaceutical chemistry professor and later rector of the University of Marburg.[2] His mother Emma Karoline Johanna Gewiese died of diabetes when he was four years old.[3] He studied classics and philosophy at the University of Breslau under Richard Hönigswald, then moved to Marburg to study with Paul Natorp and Nicolai Hartmann.[4] Gadamer defended his dissertation on Plato's dialogues in 1922 and soon began studying with Martin Heidegger at Freiburg University.[5]
Unlike Heidegger, Gadamer did not join the Nazi Party and was not politically active during Nazi rule.[6] Gadamer moved to Heidelberg in 1949, succeeding Karl Jaspers as philosophy chair, and completed Truth and Method in 1960.[7] After completing his habilitation in 1929, Gadamer delivered lectures in Marburg for much of the early 1930s.[6]
What the cited sources add
A Guardian obituary notes that Gadamer only came to prominence with Truth and Method in 1960, and his role is best seen as part of the postwar rehabilitation of German philosophy.[8] The same obituary states that Heidegger remained the formative influence on Gadamer's thinking.[8] According to the Guardian, Gadamer never joined the Nazi party and avoided military commitments due to polio contracted as a student.[8] The obituary reports that in 1934 Gadamer taught briefly at the University of Kiel, a well-known Nazi stronghold.[8]
After the conflict ended, the Soviets installed Gadamer as rector of Leipzig University; he then relocated to Frankfurt in 1947 and ultimately settled in Heidelberg in 1949, living there without marrying until his death.[8]
References
- Wikipedia, "Hans-Georg Gadamer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Siegel, "Introduction to Modern Literary Theory", kristisiegel.com (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hans-Georg Gadamer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Grondin 2003, p. 12; Grondin 2003, p. 12 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hans-Georg Gadamer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Grondin 2003, p. 12; Grondin 2003, p. 12; Grondin 2003, p. 12 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hans-Georg Gadamer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Grondin 2003, p. 12 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hans-Georg Gadamer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Di Cesare 2007, p. 5–7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hans-Georg Gadamer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ideologische Mächte im deutschen Faschismus Band 5: Heidegger im Kontext: Gesamtüberblick zum NS-Engagement der Universitätsphilosophen, George Leaman, Rainer A (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Hans-Georg Gadamer" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lavietes, "Hans-Georg Gadamer, 102, Who Questioned Fixed Truths", The New York Times, 2002-03-25; "Hans-Georg Gadamer Dies; Noted German Philosopher", Washington Post, 16 March 2002; Roberts, Julian, "Hans-Georg Gadamer", The Guardian, 18 March 2002; "Hans-Georg Gadamer", The Independent, 26 March 2002; "Department of Classics", Dalhousie University (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Roberts, Julian, "Hans-Georg Gadamer", The Guardian, 18 March 2002. facts only, no text reused. theguardian.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Hans-Georg Gadamer (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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