Edward Tingley

Hans-Georg Gadamer: A Biography. By Jean Grondin. Translated by Joel Weinsheimer. Yale University Press. 512 pp. $35. It is reasonable to be dubious about biographies of philosophers, even when they are good. For what, after all, is the life of a philosopher? How much a novelist lived the events he . . . . Continue Reading »

In the unforgettable Franny and Zooey , J.D. Salinger’s wearied heroine, recovering from some kind of spiritual crisis, mulls unhappily over her college experience. ”It was the worst of all in class . . . ” she said with decision. “That was the worst. What happened was, I got . . . . Continue Reading »

Modern institutions talk about themselves. When a corporation refashions itself”undergoes a complete makeover not merely to look different, but to play an entirely different role”this revolution is fundamentally a matter of talk. Such a transformation took place in the university in the . . . . Continue Reading »