The Rabbi and the Gadfly: Finitude and the Dialectic of Tradition and Critique

Even when it embraces Socratic critique, education instills a particular tradition or way of life. But the postmodern shift invites suspicion of such efforts, and so engenders a crucial question: Given inevitable biases, how can educators do their work with a (justifiably) clear conscience? This ess...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of interdisciplinary studies
Main Author: Scriven, Charles 1945- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Institute for Interdisciplinary Research [2019]
In: Journal of interdisciplinary studies
RelBib Classification:AB Philosophy of religion; criticism of religion; atheism
BH Judaism
ZF Education
Further subjects:B Ethics
B Education
B Gadamer, Hans Georg, 1900-2002
B Rabbis
B philosophy of education
B Integrity
Description
Summary:Even when it embraces Socratic critique, education instills a particular tradition or way of life. But the postmodern shift invites suspicion of such efforts, and so engenders a crucial question: Given inevitable biases, how can educators do their work with a (justifiably) clear conscience? This essay approaches the question by way of Hans-Georg Gadamer's "philosophical hermeneutics." It introduces the title's "rabbi" and "gadfly" images, then illuminates the argument's context by considering two recent philosophies of education. Gadamer's framework shows how his emphasis on conversation sheds light on the question of integrity in education. Finally, given the inevitable "tradition-assertion" that education involves, and in light of a seeming deficiency in Gadamer's treatment of conversation, the essay explores an "ethics of affirmation. " The key claim is that the obligation to declare, or even to persuade, is as important as the obligation to listen.
ISSN:2766-0508
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of interdisciplinary studies