Hans-Georg Gadamer
The German philosopher who argued that understanding grows out of dialogue, and starts with a real, open question.
Books
Truth and Method1960His major work. The chapter on the hermeneutic priority of the question is the most precise text on what asking means.
Philosophical Hermeneutics1976Shorter essays that make a gentler way into his ideas than Truth and Method.
Mentioned in
In praise of asking, part one
Answers got cheap, so where does a good question come from? The story starts with a parrot asking “What’s that?” in front of a mirror, and goes on to silent classrooms and an AI that never needs anything.