Metaphysical Hermeneutics - by Jean Grondin (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

If in its simplest form, hermeneutics is a quest for understanding, then part of that quest will always include striving to understand being and the meaning of being. This open access book takes that ambition seriously, arguing that hermeneutics and metaphysics, so central to philosophical thought but so rarely put in tandem, are two complementary fundamentals of human existence.

Metaphysical Hermeneutics puts forward the argument for a hermeneutical metaphysics in service of philosophy's basic aim: to make sense of our experience. Jean Grondin builds his argument for this combined discipline around the idea of 'sense' - a theme that is both hermeneutical and metaphysical. What we seek to glimpse is not just a figment of the mind but always the meaning of something. Grondin calls on one of the founding figures of contemporary hermeneutics Hans-Georg Gadamer to test his theories, singling out the metaphysical dimension of Gadamer's ideas and questioning his seeming embrace and rejection of that dimension. Rooting these questions in the human search for meaning is a major contribution to the scope and resources of hermeneutic philosophy.

The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by the Department of Philosophy at the University of Montreal.

Review Quotes

Grondin's project of metaphysical hermeneutics is a bold attempt to bring the modern question of understanding into dialogue with the classic question of being. It is a timely interrogation of the meaning of life - by showing how we make sense of sense. How we interpret our sensing of the things themselves. A vital and compelling argument.

Richard Kearney, Boston College, USA

Metaphysical Hermeneutics is one of the most noteworthy books on philosophical hermeneutics to appear in recent years. Professor Grondin expertly navigates through the history of both hermeneutics and metaphysics, while his analysis of "sense" is especially original and important.

Paul Fairfield, Queen's University, Canada

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