Gadamer’s Account of Art and its Implication for Teaching

Abstract

This study was conducted to explain art from Gadamer’s perspective and its implications for teaching. The methodology used for this qualitative research was deductive-analytical. In this study, Gadamer's notion of understanding and its prerequisites were first expressed. Then, it was tried to examine his account of art and its role, from among different prerequisites. Since most teaching methods are inspired by the quantitative and empirical sciences, the teaching methods are limited to the transfer of specific and predictable subjects. According to Gadamer, this type of teaching is not consistent with human nature and his mechanism of learning. To get out of this problem, Gadamer's example of tragedy in the art which complements the other elements of understanding was used. Basically, artistic experience goes beyond the realm of systematic knowledge. He depicted it as a work of art, like novel or film; so that he showed how in a novel (good), the hero (heroine) of tragedy achieves a certain fate, away from inhibiting the spectators or guiding them. Like drama, escaping the inhibition is the main basis for teaching the ideals. Like the art, teaching is a process in which the horizons of teacher and student are mingled, away from inhibiting each other; and a result beyond three above-mentioned horizons is achieved. The exercise of control by each of them makes understanding and learning difficult. This type of teaching was displayed in the form of a diagram.