Role of Chiral Symmetry in the Nuclear Many-Body Problem

The role of chiral (pion) dynamics in nuclear matter is reviewed. Contributions to the energy per particle from one- and two-pion exchange are calculated systematically, and it is demonstrated that already at order $k^4_f$ in the Fermi momentum, two-pion exchange produces realistic nuclear binding together with very reasonable values for the compressibility and the asymmetry energy. Further implications of these results are discussed.