Gadamer's Critique of Enlightenment and Its Significance in His Hermeneutics

Too much attention is focused on Gadamer's critique of aesthetic consciousness,while little is known about significance of his critique of Enlightenment for understanding of his hermeneutics.Based on his discussion of the Cartesian basis of Enlightenment,this essay explores relation between Gadamer's understanding of art and his notion of hermeneutics.In contrast to criticisms launched by Habermas,Gadamer's hermeneutics,in essence,should not be interpreted as exact antithesis of Enlightenment movement.Gadamer's early notion of dialogue is in itself fueled by enlightenment aspirations.The problem,however,is that Gadamer fails to live up to these aspirations.His notion of tradition moves too close to sublime self-forgetfulness that characterizes experience of art,leading to an unresolved tension in Gadamer's hermeneutics,between enlightenment commitments and anti-enlightenment impulses.