Reformulation of the concept of understanding in Heidegger's and Gadamer's hermeneutic theories

2004
Günok, Emrah
The goal of the present dissertation is to display the reconstruction of the concept of understanding which has down through the history of philosophy been used as the synonym of knowing. Hence, my main intention is to focus on the Heidegger2s and Gadamer2s critique of epistemological conception of understanding and their reevaluation of this concept in terms of ontology. Finally, I will try to examine the similarities and dissimilarities between the philosophers and try to call attention to their emphasis on finite and historically conditioned human understanding. To fulfill the task I put forward, I shall apply to early Heidegger2s magnum opus Being and Time (1927) and Gadamer2s most influential book Truth and Method (1960).

Suggestions

Marx's epistemology : the relationship between reality and knowledge
Can, Eren; Parkan, Barış; Department of Philosophy (2011)
The purpose of this thesis is to elaborate on the Marx’s theory of knowledge. Historical materialism presented in the German Ideology and the methodological remarks in Grundrisse have led to many discussions concerning the relation between knowledge and reality in Marx’s philosophy. This thesis tried to explore the interrelationships between the kinds of knowledge we produce, abstract concepts and the concrete material conditions, as elaborated by Marx. In contrast to traditional epistemology, and more alon...
The quiddity of knowledge in Kant's critical philosophy
Serin, İsmail; Ceylan, Yasin; Department of Philosophy (2004)
In this thesis the quiddity of knowledge in Kant's critical philosophy has been investigated within the historical context of the problem. In order to illustrate the origins of the subject-matter of the dissertation, the historical background of Kant's views on the theory of knowledge has been researched too. As a result of this research, it is concluded that Kant did not invent a new philosophical problem, but he tried to improve a decisive solution for one of the oldest question of history of philosophy i...
The critiques of the enlightenment by Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno and their understanding of a new method and philosophy
Yenisoy, Eylem; Turan, Şeref Halil; Department of Philosophy (2006)
The strong part of Horkheimer and Adorno’s philosophy is their critique of the Enlightenment. They argue that the consequent of the Enlightenment has been the destruction of the Enlightenment itself. There are two main reasons in the background of this destruction. First of them is the destruction of individual because of the understanding of reason in the Enlightenment. Individuals cannot define their existence beyond the determined roles of society any more. The second reason is the certain distinction be...
The formation of the self as mental unity and moral agency in hume’s philosophy
Neslioğlu, E. Funda; Grünberg, David; Department of Philosophy (2008)
This dissertation proposes to analyze the stages in the formation of the idea of self in Hume’s philosophy. According to Hume we have no a simple and individual impression that we can call the self where the self is the totality of conscious life of a person. Nevertheless, we do have an idea of personal identity that must be accounted for. He begins his explanation of this idea by noting that our perceptions are fleeting, and he concludes from this that all we are is a bundle of different perceptions. But ...
A Philosophical approach to upper-level ontologies
Satıoğlu, Dilek; Zambak, Aziz Fevzi; Department of Philosophy (2015)
The aim of this thesis is to provide a philosophical approach to upper-level ontologies. The ontologies and/or categorical system of Aristotle, Kant, Husserl, and Quine are evaluated in order to give a philosophical understanding of ontologies. After an explanation of the developments in ontology as a new interdisciplinary study, the most well known upper-level ontologies, BFO, DOLCE, SUMO, and Cyc, are analysed technically. In the light of philosophical ontologies and categorical systems, these upper-level...
Citation Formats
E. Günok, “Reformulation of the concept of understanding in Heidegger’s and Gadamer’s hermeneutic theories,” M.S. - Master of Science, Middle East Technical University, 2004.