The Beginning of Knowledge

by Hans-Georg Gadamer

Overview

The Beginning of Knowledge brings together almost all of Gadamer's essays on the Presocratics. In each of the essays Gadamer discusses the origins of knowledge in the western philosophical tradition. Beginning with a hermeneutical and philological investigation of the Heraclitus fragments he moves on to a discussion of the Greek Atomists and the Presocratic cosmologists. In the final two essays he elaborates on the profound debt that modern science owes to the Greeks and shows how their works have shaped modern day physics, mathematics and medicine. The philosophers discussed include Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Anaximander, Heraclitus and Parmenides. This is a major work from one of the 20th century's greatest thinkers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781474294331
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	10/20/2016
Series:	Bloomsbury Revelations
Edition description:	Reissue
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 8.60(h) x 0.50(d)

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.

Table of Contents

Translator's Preface

Author's Preface

1. On the Tradition of Heraclitus

2. Hearaclitus Studies

3. Ancient Atomic Theory

4. Plato and Presocratic Cosmology

5. Greek Philosophy and Modern Thought

6. Natural Science and the Concept of Nature

Publication History

Index

Editorial Reviews

[Gadamer's] views on the ancient Greeks provide a powerful reply to Heidegger's enormously creative, but less than accurate interpretations…Whether or not one finds Gadamer's Platonic route to the pre-Socratics to be successful, he produces stimulating insights into their views and challenges one to rearticulate why Gadamer might be wrong, if he is wrong. Such challenges are always welcome.” —David Vessey in Philosophy in Review

From the Publisher

Ten lectures by Gadamer (emeritus, U. of Heidelberg) explore various issues in pre-Socratic philosophy. The volume begins with two hermeneutical and philological investigations of the Heraclitus fragments. Other topics include, for example, Ancient Greek atomic theory and the contributions of Greek philosophy to modern science. The essays have all been published previously in various journals in German. This is the first English translation. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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