Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

10-1984

Abstract

Hermeneutics, as a philosophical enterprise, is not new; it can be traced back at least to Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834) and Wilhelm Dilthey (1833-1911).1 Yet hermeneutics did not reach its philosophical maturity and acquire the worldwide recognition that it deserves until Hans-Georg Gadamer published his magnum opus, Truth and Method, in 1960.2 Here, with the help of Heidegger, hermeneutics is transformed from a general methodology of the "human sciences" (Geisteswissenschaften) into a full-fledged "practical" philo- sophy.3 With Gadamer, as we shall see, hermeneutics can no longer be under- stood as merely a theory of interpretation; rather, it is to be seen as an attempt to disclose the ontological dimension of understanding as a mode of being of our being-in-the-world. It is on this fundamental philosophical level that I see a possible dialogue between hermeneutics and Confucian thought emerging. More precisely, it seems to me that Gadamer's hermeneutics and the Analects can be fruitfully compared in terms of their general "practical" orientation and their specific emphasis on the notion of "tradition." This is the central claim which we will try to explicate in the following pages. As Gadamer is often misunderstood and the term "hermeneutics" is now used in diverse contexts, we will begin with a fairly detailed outline of Gadamer's understanding of "tradition" and of hermeneutics as a practical philosophy. Then, using a Gadamerian framework, the notion of tradition in the Analects will be examined. In the final section, we will very briefly sketch out the paradigm of tradition that emerges, with the view of a possible contribution to the general problematic of an East-West philosophical dialogue.

Discipline

Asian Studies | Philosophy

Research Areas

Integrative Research Areas

Publication

Philosophy East and West

Volume

34

Issue

4

First Page

421

Last Page

436

ISSN

0031-8221

Identifier

10.2307/1399176

Publisher

University of Hawaii Press

Additional URL

http://doi.org/10.2307/1399176

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