Hermeneutics

Hermeneutics initialy came to be associated with the interpretation of biblical scripture, becoming a dominant movement within Protestant Theology. But with the development of its principles and theory by, particularly, Heidegger and Gadamer, it became a distinctive philosophical movement in its own right and has come to be influential within the field of Literary Criticism. Very broadly speaking, philosophical hermeneutics is concerned with the process through which understanding may occur between/among two or more 'alien' others--whether alien due to religion, historical period, geography, language, generation, or any other cultural difference that imposes challenges to peaceful communication and mutual understanding. Thus, hermeneutics is of particular relevance for us in our global world where, at times, the clash of cultural misunderstanding devastates human communities with 'resounding gong(s).'

Sub-Categories:

Hermeneutics and the Philosophy of Science - Different articles of Prof. Patrick A. Heelan
Rate this
Hermeneutics: From Textual Explication to Computer Understanding? - Article by John C. Mallery, Roger Hurwitz, Gavan Duffy, which provides perspectives for a review of recent hermeneutically-oriented Artificial Intelligence research. Offers a thorough overview of the development of philosophical hermeneutics from Schleiermacher to Gadamer with sections: Classical Methodological Hermeneutics, Philosophical Hermeneutics, Critical Hermeneutics, Phenomenological Hermeneutics, Hermeneutics as Meta-Science, and Hermeneutics in AI.
Rate this
Foundationalism and Hermeneutics - Site about the interaction of hermeneutics and foundationalism. The interaction of hermeneutics and foundationalism is the same as the interaction of interpretation and reality. Our connection to reality may underdetermine the interpretation, leaving a range of possibilities, but it does impose a limit to interpretation, determining a certain range. What hermeneutics and foundationalism really represent, however, is something logically more precise. Hermeneutics is about interpretation, which is about meaning, which is about what is understood. Foundationalism is about reality, which is about truth, which is about what is known.
Rate this
References on Hermeneutics - Prepared by Allen S. Lee and distributed in the 1991 International Conference on Information Systems workshop, "Two Techniques for Qualitative Data Analysis: Analytic Induction and Hermeneutics." Revised, 1995.
Rate this
Hermeneutics in Russia - Hermeneutics in Russia is an international quarterly intended to answer questions about the problems of hermeneutics. Problems of reflectivity, interpretation and forming readiness for understanding will also be discussed.
Rate this
Education as the normative dimesion of philosophical Hermeneuticas - An article by David Blacker, that attempts to renew a dialogically-grounded humanism, an old educational ideal that finds the beginnings of a compelling and novel defense in the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer.
Rate this
Education and Philosophical Hermeneutics - Essay by James M. Giarelli as a response to the article of David Blacker.
Rate this
International Institute of Hermeneutics - An autonomous, international, and interdisciplinary research institute, founded to foster and articulate a general hermeneutics, a task demanding an intensive interdisciplinary collaboration on a level that does not yet exist in the contemporary university. It has a particular concentration in philosophy, religious studies, and comparative literature.
Rate this
The Hermeneutics of Postmodernity and after - Article by Gary B. Madison at the conference, "After Post-modernism," highlighting the moral optimism of the hermeneutic branch of postmodern thought in opposition to "the dead-end of relativism and nihilism" characterized by poststructuralism and neopragmatism.
Rate this
Worldtrade.com Reviews of Books about Gadamer's Hermeneutics - Word Trade, describing itself as "an independent review agency serving the public, scholars, libraries, and booksellers," here provides reviews of books on or by Gadamer, including: Gadamer In Conversation: Reflections and Commentary by Hans Georg Gadamer; HERMENEUTICS AND THE VOICE OF THE OTHER: Re-reading Gadamer's Philosophical Hermeneutics by James Risser; DIALOGUE & DECONSTRUCTION: The Gadamer Derrida Encounter by Diane P. Michelfelder.
Rate this
Rhetorical Hermeneutics - This volume provides thoughtful answers to a surprisingly large number of significant questions in the rhetoric of science and in rhetorical theory generally. Unlike most anthologies, there is no issue of continuity in this one. It contains treatments of the field's most central issues and has a group of well-known authors who, in fact, have helped to define the field. It should have a wide readership because of its topical interest, its attention to basic theoretical issues, and its presentation of high quality academic debate.
Rate this
Richard Palmer - Homepage of the premier exponent of Gadamer in English. Includes notes on how to research Gadamer, bibliographies, and general links on hermeneutics.
Rate this
Philosophical Hermeneutics, or Theories of Interpretation - Sample syllabus of Dr. Harry Reeder's regularly taught (graduate & undergraduate)course on hermeneutics - this course will begin with a consideration of the background of philosophical hermeneutics (theories of interpretation) in modern philosophy (Descartes, Hume, Kant, Dilthey). Then it will follow the hermeneutic tradition in philosophy as it develops in the twentieth century, through a philosophical examination of the works of Edmund Husserl, Martin Heidegger, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Jürgen Habermas, and Paul Ricoeur. In addition, we will examine the independent yet in part parallel philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein.
Rate this
Dialogue and Conversation: The Contribution of Gadamer, Habermas, Bohm and Others - Article from The Encyclopedia of Informal Education exploring the related notions of dialogue and conversation in the thinking of Hans-Georg Gadamer, Paulo Freire, Jürgen Habermas, and David Bohm.
Rate this
Hermeneutics 101 - Hermeneutics, a method of textual analysis, means to interpret. Hermeneutics is an artful form of understanding and a process of exposing hidden meanings. Historically, hermeneutics has been associated with the interpretation of biblical texts. This presentation will provide a historical background of hermeneutics. The evolution of hermeneutics will be discussed, as well as the philosophical influences of Husserl, Heidegger, and Gadamer.
Rate this
Some Principles of Phenomenological Hermeneutics - An essay offering a brief overview of hermeneutics designed for students of literary theory.
Rate this
Transgressing the Boundaries: Towards a Transformative Hermeneutics of Quantum Gravity - Essay by physicist, Alan Sokal, teasing philosophical implications from quantum mechanics, with a view to accomodating some feminist and poststructuralist critiques of the ideology of domination perceived to be inherent in the discourse of much of the scientific community.
Rate this
Nick Szabo -- Hermeneutics - Overview of Philosophical hermeneutics with relevance to practical applications such as the development of common law, computational theory, and evolution.
Rate this
A Hermeneutical Approach to Modern Science: Extending Paul Ricoeur's Hermeneutics - An Essay extending Ricoeur's work in hermeneutics into the biophysical sciences, in the hopes of developing "a framework for the mythological treatment of modern scientific cosmology which can help us productively reframe and reshape the content and culture of science."
Rate this
Preaching in a Postmoder Wor[l]d: Gadamer's Philosophical Hermeneutics - An essay by Jeffrey F. Bullock, written in an effort to re-center homiletics in ontologically experiential conversation rather than the transmission of information.
Rate this
A Hermeneutic and Rhetoric of Dreams - An essay discussing the apparent meaning in dreams by Cyd C. Ropp at Janus Head
Rate this
Buddhist Hermeneutics - Paul Griffiths' review of the book, "Buddhist Hermeneutics" from the journal, Philosophy East & West, Vol.40 No.2 April 1990.
Rate this
Expanding Hermeneutics -
Rate this
Hermeneutics: 1. Nineteenth Century - "Hermeneutics in the Ninteenth Century" in The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism
Rate this
Hermeneutics: 2. Twentieth Century - "Hermeneutics in the Twentieth Century" in The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism
Rate this

Articles in this category:

Web Search for Hermeneutics Continental Philosophy Philosophy Society - News search for Hermeneutics Continental Philosophy Philosophy Society - encyclopedia entries for Hermeneutics Continental Philosophy Philosophy Society