Negative Hermeneutics and the Question of Practice

Professor Nicholas Davey (University of Dundee, UK)

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English

Bloomsbury Academic
24 July 2025

Philosophy of language; Philosophy; Philosophy: aesthetics; History of ideas; Philosophy & theory of education

How do words and images function hermeneutically? How does hermeneutic practice work? Answering these questions and more, Nicholas Davey develops the hermeneutical foundations of creative practice. In doing so, he not only uncovers the significance of philosophical hermeneutics for the arts and the humanities, but defends the humanities as a whole from the current scepticism inspired by deconstruction and post-structuralism.

Taking Gadamer’s language ontology as its cue, this pioneering volume not only addresses certain weaknesses that Davey observes in Gadamer’s thought but further takes Gadamerian thinking beyond Gadamer himself. In particular, Davey investigates the productive value of negativity that is central to hermeneutics and to wider spheres of creative learning.

Advocating a renewed confidence in hermeneutics and the humanities, Negative Hermeneutics and the Question of Practice reveals how hermeneutical thinking provides a map of the dynamics within creative practice, eliminating the need for an externally imposed ‘theory’ of the arts.

By: Professor Nicholas Davey (University of Dundee UK)
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm, Spine: 25mm
Weight: 454g
ISBN: 9781350347649
ISBN 10: 1350347647
Pages: 328
Publication Date: 24 July 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Nicholas Davey is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Dundee, UK. His previous publications include Unquiet Understanding (2006) and Unfinished Worlds (2014).

Reviews for Negative Hermeneutics and the Question of Practice

In this book Nicholas Davey convincingly demonstrates how the experience of the negative is the real force behind our ability not just for understanding but for a transformative understanding. The comprehensive scope of his analysis provides new insights, renewing the significance of hermeneutics for philosophy and the humanities. * James Risser, Professor Emeritus in Residence, Seattle University, USA *