What is Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics really about? And how did it develop and change over the years? Donatella Di Cesare recounts the life of the Marburg philosopher and retraces all the stages of his thought.

Hans-Georg Gadamer (1900-2002) is one of the most representative figures of twentieth century philosophy. What is his philosophical hermeneutics really about? And how did it develop and change over the years? Donatella Di Cesare recounts the life of the Marburg philosopher and retraces all the stages of his thought, from his student days in his hometown to the dark hours of Nazism and the war years in Leipzig, from the birth of hermeneutics in Heidelberg to its success in the United States and worldwide. Gadamer's philosophy increasingly moved away from Heidegger and chose Plato's dialogue, enabling him to develop his thoughts critically. By forsaking a metaphysical foundation, which did however not mean a renunciation of universality, his philosophical hermeneutics accepts finiteness and, at the same time, is receptive to a ceaseless dialogue in the ongoing comparison with other major contemporary philosophical trends.

Autorentext
Geboren 1956; studierte Philosophie in Rom, Tübingen und Heidelberg; 1996-2001 Humboldtstipendiatin an der Universität Heidelberg und Schülerin von Hans-Georg Gadamer; seit 2001 Professorin für Philosophie an der Universität "La Sapienza" in Rom sowie für Jüdische Philosophie am Collegio Rabbinico Italiano.