Dasein - Monoskop

250 PART III
terms. The former idea is approached with the notion of "Spiel"
(game, play), while the latter is analyzed with the help of the concept
oi"Bild" (picture). To turn to Gadamer's discussion of these notions
is important for us, not only because they show certain parallels and
differences between Gadamer and Wittgenstein but also because they
throw additional light upon Gadamer's conception of language as the
universal medium.
Gadamer employs the concept of Spiel in order to vindicate
Heidegger's idea that language speaks for us. Interestingly enough,
Heidegger himself had earlier used the notion of Spiel for precisely
the same purpose. In fact Gadamer's analysis of Spiel was anticipated
by Heidegger as early as 1928/29 in unpublished lectures entitled
"Introduction to Philosophy". 60 Taking his starting point from
Kant's notion of the "Spiel des Lebens" (play of life, game of life),
Heidegger suggested that Dasein's Being-in-the-world be conceptualized
as a Spiel. Spiel undercuts the subject vs. object distinction;
playing is an "inseparable happening in itself" 61 , and the subject
of the Spiel is the Spiel itself rather than the player: "Das Spielen
spielt sich" (The playing plays itself). 62 Heidegger put forward
the idea that playing is "in its basic character ... being in a certain
mood" 63 , and he endorsed the view that the essence of the Spiel is
more than just the mere execution of, and adherence to, rules. Heidegger
remarked that something essential is missing in the equation
"Spielen = following of Spiel rules". 64 Heidegger also suggested applying
his analysis of the Spiel to language by writing that "it is
the metaphysical meaning of language that language plays with us
rather than we with language". 65
Even though Gadamer had no knowledge of these lectures (pers.
comm.), his own analysis of the notion of Spiel leads to the same
results. 66 Thus Gadamer holds that "alles Spielen ist ein Gespieltwerden"
(all playing is a being-played) 67 , that we have to accept
the "primacy of the Spiel over the player's consciousness" and that
"... the most original sense of Spielen is the medial one". 68 In other
words, a Spiel is more than what the players plan and strive for. The
Spiel's own 'logic', its own dynamic, has primacy over the players,
who give up or delegate some of their conscious control over what is
happening.