Hans Blumenberg, II: Metaphors and Other Imaginings

Abstract This paper is part of a series of essays on Hans Blumenberg’s philosophy. It deals with his interpretation of metaphors, with particular reference to his Paradigms for a Metaphorology, first published in 1960. From a brief introductory comment on Blumenberg ’s understanding of phenomenology and its place in the history of philosophy, the argument moves to his use of Kant’s Critique of Judgment to lay the groundwork for a theory of metaphor. A close reading of the introduction to Paradigms for a Metaphorology underlines the problematic character of the proposed categories of absolute and residual metaphors. On the basis of the conceptual groundings and the subsequent phnomenological descriptions of metaphors, a comparison of Blumenberg’s thought with other approaches is suggested; in particular, his affinities with theorists of social imaginaries are emphasized. The last section of the paper discusses some problems of metaphorological elements in Blumenberg’s later work, as well as responses by commentators and critics, and foreshadows a focus on Blumenberg’s phenomenology of history, as well as his anthopology, in forthcoming papers.