The Beginning of Philosophy - by Hans-Georg Gadamer (Paperback)

About the Book

Hans-Georg Gadamer is considered to have made the most important contribution to hermeneutics of this century through his major work, Truth and Method. Born in Marburg on February 11, 1900, he earned his doctorate under Paul Natorp, the Plato scholar, in 1922 and completed his habilitation thesis on Plato's dialectical ethics under Martin Heidegger in 1928. He spent the major portion of his teaching career at the University of Heidelberg, becoming emeritus professor in 1968. In retirement he became widely known in the United States through his regular fall courses at Boston college and his numerous lectures at major universities throughout the century.

Book Synopsis

Hans-Georg Gadamer is considered to have made the most important contribution to hermeneutics of this century through his major work, Truth and Method. Born in Marburg on February 11, 1900, he earned his doctorate under Paul Natorp, the Plato scholar, in 1922 and completed his habilitation thesis on Plato's dialectical ethics under Martin Heidegger in 1928. He spent the major portion of his teaching career at the University of Heidelberg, becoming emeritus professor in 1968. In retirement he became widely known in the United States through his regular fall courses at Boston college and his numerous lectures at major universities throughout the century.

Review Quotes

"These ten lectures on the pre-Socratic beginnings of philosophy, by one of the world's greatest living philosophers, were originally delivered in Italian at the Naples Institute for the Study of Philosophy in 1988....Directed to a general university audience, they reflect Gadamer's lively and engaging style. He takes major topics in Plato and Aristotle reason, opinion, nature, spirit, and being and traces them back to their pre-Socratic antecedents, especially Parmenides' Way of Truth. A careful and accurate translation of a lively, engaging, and accessible series of lectures on pre-Socratic philosophy. Highly recommended." Choice

About the Author

Hans-Georg Gadamer was born on 11 February 1900 and died on 13 March 2002. He was the author, most notably, of Truth and Method, and, more recently, of The Beginning of Philosophy and The Beginning of Knowledge.