ABSTRACT
This chapter offers a new reading of Gadamer's hermeneutics, arguing that Spiel should be seen as the phenomenon that ties together each part of Truth and Method. While the ‘fusion of horizons’ has often dominated discussions – and criticisms – of his work, Spiel is properly seen as the centre of his phenomenology of understanding. Doing so addresses many of the issues raised by Gadamer's critics, clarifying and supplementing underdeveloped aspects of Gadamer's hermeneutics. Spiel honours the alterity of the other within the movement of application, because our Vorurteile (prejudices) are really on the table in the encounter with tradition. Gadamer's intuition is that the circular dynamic of Spiel leads to greater understanding, rather than simply new misunderstandings. This chapter uses economic game theory to confirm and clarify why Gadamer's optimism might be justified, supplementing his terminology with the ideas of ‘payoffs’ and ‘coordination’. Seeing understanding as Spiel helps allay concerns that Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics makes meaning radically subjective, explaining why repeated interactions can lead to greater coordination with the horizon of the other.
