Gadamer, Hans-Georg (b. Feb. 11, 1900, Marburg, Ger.—d. March 13, 2002, Heidelberg) German philosopher whose system of philosophi¬ cal hermeneutics, derived in part from the ideas of Wilhelm Dilthey, Edmund Husserl, and Martin Heidegger, was influential in 20th-century Continental philosophy, aesthetics, theology, and literary criticism. The son of a chemistry professor, Gadamer studied the humanities at the univer¬ sities of Breslau, Marburg, Freiburg, and Munich, earning a doctorate in philosophy under Heidegger at Freiburg in 1922. He later taught at the universities of Frankfurt am Main (1947-49) and Heidelberg (from 1949), where he became professor emeritus in 1968. In his most important work, Truth and Method (1960), Gadamer developed a general theory of under¬ standing and interpretation modeled on the experience of art.
Gaddi Ygad-de\, Taddeo (b. c. 1300, Florence—d. 1366?, Florence) Italian painter active in Florence. He was the son of a painter and mosa- icist and a student of Giotto. His best-known works are frescoes in the church of Santa Croce in Florence. He directed a flourishing workshop for three decades, producing pictures in the style of Giotto but featuring more vivid picturesque effects with narrative detail. His son and pupil Agnolo (c. 1350-96) was an influential and prolific artist who likewise produced a notable series of frescoes for Santa Croce, The Legend of the True Cross (c. 1388-93).
Gaddis, William (Thomas) (b. Dec. 29, 1922, New York, N.Y., U.S.—d. Dec. 16, 1998, East Hampton, N.Y.) U.S. novelist. He attended Harvard University and later wrote speeches and screenplays. His long
experimental novels are characterized by complex and allusive plotting and language and a dark (if often humorous) view of contemporary Ameri¬ can society. His first, The Recognitions (1955), a multileveled examina¬ tion of spiritual bankruptcy, was only belatedly recognized as a masteipiece. Discouraged by its reception, he published nothing more until JR (1975, National Book Award), which depicts greed, hypocrisy, and banality in business. His later novels are Carpenter’s Gothic (1985) and A Frolic of His Own (1994, National Book Award).
Gadsden, James (b. May 15, 1788, Charleston, S.C., U.S.—d. Dec. 26, 1858, Charleston) U.S. soldier and diplomat. He was appointed an officer in the U.S. Army in 1812. He established military posts in Florida in 1820 and supervised the forced removal of Seminole Indians to reser¬ vations in southern Florida in 1823. In 1832 he negotiated a treaty for the removal of the Seminoles to the West, and he served in the war that fol¬ lowed the refusal of some Seminoles to leave Florida (see Seminole Wars). From 1840 to 1850 he was president of a South Carolina railroad. In 1853 he was appointed U.S. minister to Mexico and was instructed to buy land from Mexico for a southern railroad route (see Gadsden Purchase).
Gadsden Purchase (Dec. 30, 1853) U.S. purchase of land in Mexico. Following the conquest of much of northern Mexico in the Mexican War (1848), advocates of a southern transcontinental railroad endorsed the purchase of 30,000 sq mi (78,000 sq km) of northern Mexican territory, now southern Arizona and southern New Mexico. The purchase was nego¬ tiated by James Gadsden, U.S. minister to Mexico, for $10 million. The acquisition fixed the borders of the later 48 contiguous states.
gadwall Small dabbling duck ( Anas strepera) that is a popular game bird, found throughout the upper Northern Hemisphere. Its largest breeding populations in North America are in the Dakotas and in Canada’s prairie provinces. The gadwall is brownish gray with white patches, visible only during flight, on the rear of the wings. Its preferred diet is stems and leaves of aquatic plants, supplemented by seeds and algae. Gadwalls often live in shallow freshwater ponds and marshes, often in mixed flocks with wigeons. Unlike wigeons, they rarely feed on land.
Gaea Vje-o\ Greek goddess of the earth. She was both mother and wife to Uranus, or Heaven, from whom she was separated by her son Cro¬ nus, a Titan. According to Hesiod, she was the mother of all 12 Titans, as well as of the Furies and the Cyclo¬ pes (see Cyclops). She may have originated as a mother goddess wor¬ shiped in pre-Hellenic Greece before the introduction of the cult of Zeus.
Gaelic Yga-lik\ football Irish sport, an offshoot of the violent medieval game melee. In the modern game, sides are limited to 15 players.
Players may not throw the ball but may dribble it with hand or foot and may punch or punt it toward their opponents’ goal. Goals count as either one or three points, depending on whether the ball passes above (one) or below (three) a crossbar attached to the goalposts. It is played mostly in Ireland and the U.S.
Gaelic language See Irish lan¬ guage; Scottish Gaelic language
Gaelic revival Resurgence of interest in Irish language, literature, history, and folklore inspired by the growing Irish nationalism of the early 19th century. With the 17th- century English conquest and settlement of Ireland, Irish almost disap¬ peared as a literary language. By the mid-19th century, translations of heroic tales from ancient Irish manuscripts led to the popularity, among the educated classes, of poets who wrote in patterns echoing ancient bardic verse. The revival laid the scholarly and nationalistic groundwork for the Irish Literary Renaissance. See also bard.
Gaea, terra-cotta statuette from Tana- gra, Greece; in the Mu see Borely, Marseille.
GIRAUDON/ART RESOURCE, NEW VORK
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Gafencu Xga-'fen-kiiV Grigore (b. Jan. 30,1892, Bucharest, Rom.—d. Jan. 30, 1957, Paris, France) Romanian politician. A journalist, he became editor of Argus (1924) and in the 1930s founded Timpul, which became Bucharest’s leading daily journal. He was elected to the Parliament in 1928 and served in various cabinet-level posts. In 1938 he was appointed foreign minister as a gesture to the Western democracies. He tried to maintain Romania’s neutrality in World War II, but in 1940 he was dis¬ missed to appease the Axis Powers. He left Romania in 1941 and even¬ tually settled in Paris.
gag rule Parliamentary device to limit debate; specifically, one of a series of resolutions passed by the U.S. Congress that tabled without dis¬ cussion petitions regarding slavery (1836-40). It was introduced by pro¬ slavery members to postpone consideration of antislavery petitions encouraged by the American Anti-Slavery Society. It was repealed in 1844 due to efforts of John Quincy Adams and others.
gagaku \ga-'ga-ku\ Traditional court and religious music of Japan. It first appeared in Japan as an import from Korea in the 5th century ad and had become established at court by the 8th century. Though little nota¬ tion from before the 12th century survives, a mostly later body of music continues to be performed at Shinto ceremonies. Gagaku employs trans¬ verse flute ( ryuteki ), double-reed pipe ( hichiriki ), mouth organ ( slid ), gong (shdko), drums, and stringed instruments including the biwa (see pipa) and koto. It may accompany dance ( bugaku ) or be played independently (kan- gen)\ it is further classified either as togaku, the so-called music of the left (which included Chinese and Indian materials), or as komagaku, the music of the right (including Korean examples). (The terms left and right were derived from the Confucian-based administration system of the capi¬ tal during the Heian period.)