Emmanuel Levinas： Hermeneutics, Ethics, and Art

This article draws attention to the subject of art in Levinas＇s thinking through consideration of his philosophical language, which is aided by images, metaphors, and idioms of art. The primary image that will accompany our discussion throughout this article is the image of art as shadow, which Levinas incorporates into the title of the essay which he devotes to the subject of art： ＂Reality and Its Shadow＂. Thinking about art from the perspective of Levinas means thinking about image and essence, about which is visible before us and which we cannot see, and about the different ways in which art can express itself. Levinas＇s theory of interpretation is grounded in and guided by the field of ethics and addresses the ethical aspects of interpretation. Levinas approaches the discourse of interpretation not out of na＇ivet6 but rather based on a deep understanding of the field of hermeneutics, with all its shortcomings and challenges. Thinking of hermeneutics from an ethical perspective is no mere addition to the discussion but the very crux of the matter. An attempt to understand interpretation as an act of exposing the truth encounters serious philosophical and logical difficulties, whether we are seeking to discover the intention of the artist, the intent of a specific work of art, or a hidden form within the work itself. The engagement with Levinas＇s theory of hermeneutics, however, raises a different question which is the focus of this article： Can Levinas＇s theory of interpretation be applied to the realm of artistic creation, and if so, how？ This question is sharpened by the difficulties that Levinas himself poses to his readers by designating art as the ＂shadow＂ of reality and drawing attention to the egoistic dimension of the artistic act.

An Interpretation of Danto’s the End-of-Art Thesis from the Perspective of Gadamerian Hermeneutics

Ontology of art,philosophy of art history,and aesthetics make up Danto’s integrated philosophy of art.The end-of-art thesis is the essence of Danto’s philosophy of art history.As an analytical philosopher,Danto’s philosophy resembles Hans-Georg Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics in the viewpoints concerning art and history in some ways but differs in others.Danto’s concepts of history show different tendencies in analytical philosophy of history and philosophy of art history.On the one hand,his philosophy of history conforms to Gadamer’s history of effect for the denial of the objectivity and certainty of historical truth.On the other hand,his philosophy of art history fundamentally differs from Gadamer’s relativism by asserting“the end of art”therefore generating a Hegelian law in art history.By using the strategy of“historical narrative”in his philosophy of art history,which is also in accordance with Gadamerian tradition,Danto aims to reconcile his self-contradictory historical views and to justify his philosophical position both as an“essentialist”and a“historicist”.

“Fusion of Horizons”——Analysis of Fortress Besieged From the Perspective of Gadamer’s Hermeneutics

According to Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics,two processes of“fusion of horizons”can be described as:the“horizons”of the text,the translator,and the target reader are“fused”together.Based upon the“fusion of horizons”of the hermeneutics proposed by Hans-Georg Gadamer,a leading German Continental philosopher of the twentieth century,this article aims to analyze English version of Wei Cheng written by Qian Zhongshu and then cooperatively translated by Jeanne Kelly and Nathan K.Mao.It is found that the translator can give new meaning to the text through“interpretation”,and on that basis,each interpretation of the text means a new process of“fusion of horizons”.

The Rehabilitation of Rhetoric in Gadamer’s Philosophical Hermeneutics

The interrelation of rhetoric and hermeneutics is rooted in our existential historicity and linguisticity.Rhetorical competence and education are integral approaches to a better understanding of being-in-the-world.Inspired by Platonic dialectic and Aristotle’s phronesis,Gadamer has redefined true rhetoric and revived the epistemological and ethical dimensions in rhetoric in his philosophical hermeneutics.This article investigates four aspects in Gadamer’s rehabilitation of rhetoric.First,rhetoric as ethics.Rhetoric transcends the dualism of self-other,subject-object through its dialogical structure,and is composed of understanding and application as a whole in hermeneutic experience.Second,rhetoric as discursive knowledge.Rhetoric is oriented to eine Sache(reality)itself,and is endowed with primitive experience of truth.Its own validity as discursive knowledge is not confined to scientific methodology,and is essential for natural and human sciences.Third,rhetoric as component of linguisticity.The ubiquity of rhetoric makes it an integral component of linguisticity.The capacity to use metaphors,symbols,allegory is an important aspect of our linguisticity,revealing the rhetorical quality in language.Lastly,hermeneutic theories inspired by rhetoric.Gadamer’s rehabilitation of rhetoric is beneficial for the development of philosophical hermeneutics and humanist education in modern world.

Moral Creativity in Paul Ricoeur’s Poetic Hermeneutics

Inclusiveness is a major feature of Paul Ricoeur’s thought.The various stages of his thought development penetrate each other and realize the grafting of hermeneutics and phenomenology,hermeneutics and poetics of will.Based on that meaning comes from symbolism,Ricoeur turns to the philosophical dimension of doubt and trust by means of poetic hermeneutics.Starting from breaking the absolute status of cogito since Descartes,Ricoeur proposes the relationship between symbolism and language from the level of reflection.This kind of creative interpretation not only gives symbolism poetic significance,but also realizes the grafting of hermeneutics and poetics,and finally realizes the ontological sense of reinterpreting the existence of self in the existence of the world through moral creativity.

Metaphor From the Perspective of Gadamer’s Philosophical Hermeneutics

As the essence of philosophical discourse,metaphor exists in various philosophical thoughts.This paper is an attempt to reveal the role that metaphor plays in the process of seeking truth,which is the ultimate goal of philosophy,by analyzing the origin of metaphor,the relationship between metaphor and philosophy as well as the use of metaphor in Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics.

Hermeneutics in Nursing Studies: An Integrative Review

Aim: To review nursing studies using hermeneutics as a methodology in different dimensions including practice, education, and administration. Background: Hermeneutics is a qualitative research methodology that focuses on interpreting the meanings of experiences in individual’s life. It is a major philosophy and research method in the humanities, human sciences and arts disciplines with a central goal of describing people’s experiences. Data sources: A review of relevant literature using electronics databases including EBSCO, SCOPUS, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and PUBMED. Review methods: Using an integrative method, peer-reviewed research and discussion papers published between 2013 and 2018 and listed in the CINAHL, SCOPUS, Science Direct, PubMed and Google Scholar databases were reviewed. Findings: A final review of 13 studies that used hermeneutic phenomenology as a philosophical background and research methods was done. Conclusions: Hermeneutic phenomenology has been used as a qualitative method in numerous nursing studies with different domain including practice, education and administration. The ability of the nurses to make decisions related to implementing evidence in education, practice, research, and admiration is reliant on the clinical expertise of the nurse. The review of the literature identified that the capability to correlate research findings to these three categories in nursing and the willingness and inclination to improve current practice were crucial factors for knowledge translation.

Amo’s Hermeneutics and Hegel’s Historical Prejudices Against Africa

During the lifetime of Anton Wilhelm Amos(ca.1700-ca.1755),the hermeneutics served not only interpreting and understanding of philosophical contexts,but also to overcome the prejudices and the underlying spirit of partiality with them.As one of the first modern theorist and systematician of hermeneutics,Amo dealt intensively with the prejudice problem.According to him,any prejudice is a mistake of the mind.Generalizing,Amo claims that prejudices are not a consequence of a false knowledge,but they arise by the lack of knowledge par excellence and are therefore in contradiction with reason.Amo sees the task of hermeneutics to counteract the prejudices inherent contradictions.With regard to the historical hermeneutics,he recommends to look at the past,not by selective or specific moments,but in its generality,in order to avoid contradictory and even false interpretations.But he acknowledges that only generalists as polyvalent historians of philosophy with an interdisciplinary mindset and multilingualism knowledge have this ability to general thinking.It will be examined more closely in this presentation whether Hegel can meet the hermeneutic claim within the meaning of Amo because of his pessimistic-ridiculous and contradictory prejudices about Africa.Finally,the question will be whether Hegel perhaps confounded his mental projections with the real history of Africa why he did not succeed to identify the real causes of the problems of this continent,and to describe their immediate consequences objectively.

The Sinicization of Hermeneutics:A Universal Conception of Classical Hermeneutics

We need to start from the approach to classical annotation of jingxue(Conflician classical studies),with its long history and experience,and to make use of the fine resources of contemporary Western hermeneutics,so as to build a universal classical hermeneutics that will bridge Chinese and foreign thought in the past and the present.This is a necessary path to opening up and innovating China's fine traditional culture.To carry out this important academic project of universal classical hermeneutics,it is necessary to gain an in-depth understanding of the developmental history of Western hermeneutics and contemporary philosophical hermeneutics,and especially to fully grasp Gadamer’s hermeneutical thought and theories and their contemporary development.In addition,it is necessary to comprehensively organize the vast experience and long history of jingxue and its branches,such as exegesis,textual studies,philology,bibliography and hermeneutics,and to take the modernization of jingxue as a starting point for establishing a type of universal classical hermeneutics that is different from traditional Chinese jingxue but also superior to Western hermeneutics.Only in this way can we base ourselves on China,learn from foreign countries,excavate history and grasp the contemporary,so as to fully reflect the "Chinese style and manner"and characteristics in disciplinary,academic and discourse systems.

关于“Hermeneutics”之中西方命名的探讨

"Hermeneutics"在中西方有着不同的发展轨迹,形成了不同的理论方法与思想特质,故"命名"理应存在差异。西方的"Hermeneutics"发源于解经学,但自施莱尔马赫起诠释与经典却发生了"脱离",并逐渐成为一门聚焦于"理解"的哲学。中国的"Hermeneutics"生长于经学,天生与经典不可分割,且此种关系一直延续至现当代。通过朱熹与马丁·路德、徐复观与伽达默尔两组典型个案的比较,不难发现经典是中国"Hermeneutics"的核心,失去了经典学科即不复存在;西方"Hermeneutics"的重心却在"思辨",经典只是一个"符号"。在进一步比较中西方"Hermeneutics"的先天遗传基因、后天成长环境以至当前的现存境域后,可得出结论:"Hermeneutics"于西方应命名为"诠释学",于中国称"经典诠释学"更为妥贴。

Marx＇s Philosophy as Hermeneutics of Praxis

Marx＇s hermeneutics has introduced the concept of praxis into the basic dimension of all understanding and interpretation, and thus has accomplished the “Copernican Revolution” in the history of hermeneutics. This means that we are unable to understand and interpret human existential practical activities from the perspective of idealistic texts, but should understand and interpret the idealistic texts fi＇om the perspective of human existential practical activities. In this way, Marx＇s hermeneutics of praxis has pointed us the general direction of the development of hermeneutics.

中西诠释学与佛教中国化一一记班班多杰教授与洪汉鼎先生的对话(上)

This is a detailed record and academic summary of the dialogues between Prof.Banbar Dorje School of Philosophy and Religious Studies of Central Minzu University and Prof.Hong Handing,a prestigious scholar in the hermeneutics of Philosophy regarding Chinese and Western hermeneutics and sinicization of Buddhism in the Chinese context.The main focuses of the dialogues include the differences and connection between the hermeneutics in the Western Philosophy and that of in Chinese study of Confucian classics,the meeting point and internal connection of Chinese-Western hermeneutics and the sinicization of Buddhism in the Chinese context,the intersection between the relationship of the classical texts and explanatory texts in the philosophical hermeneutics and"I annotate the Six Classics,the Six Classics annotate me"and the interpreter is more skillful than the original author"in Chinese classics,the similarities and differences between the"foresight","fusion ofperspectives",and"historical effects"of philosophical hermeneutics and"interpretation","proper use of stimulate the menstrual flow",and"Borrowing from the past to learn from the present",the ontological turn of philosophical hermeneutics with language as the principle line reveals the profound objectives of sinicization of foreign Buddhism in the Sino-Tibetan translation.

Homer in Nietzsche’s Art of Interpretation

The main purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the relevance of the aesthetic understanding of the Western culture’s development in Nietzsche’s thought based on his artistic conception of interpretation.In order to accomplish this,his considerations on the figure of Homer in the production of the classical imaginary of Greek culture are taken as a discursive motif in the comparison between three distinct nuclei of his oeuvres,namely,his methodological discussions on philology,his theoretical analyses on the rhetorical nature of language-both from the time of his academic activity in Basel-and his philosophical reflections on creative interpretation in the 1880s.The fundamental premises raised by such comparison are the following:(a)interpretation as an art is a consequence of language as a pragmatically produced system of references;and(b)language is a practical aspect of the individual’s synthetic organic condition as a body in the world.As such,interpretation would be an aesthetic synthesis in Nietzsche’s philosophy.As a concluding remark,it should be demonstrated how the interpreter conceived as a creator is as worthwhile for understanding the historical processes of cultural transmission as it is for launching prospects for the future of cultural horizons.

The Economic Analysis of Law as a Reference for the Grounds of Judicial Decisions

The present article aimed to analyze the application of the economic analysis of Law as a reference for the reasoning of judicial decisions.To that end,an analysis was carried out on the definitions of what is hermeneutics and economic analysis of law,based on the construction of the matrix rule of conduct for public administration.The method of the approach followed was empirical-dialectical,using bibliographic,legislative and jurisprudential research,having a reference to the Law and Economics.

The Economic Context of Our Time:A Diagnosis in the Light of Transformative Ethics

The following contribution is the attempt to touch upon some fundamental questions for a reliable ethical diagnosis of what can be called the economic context of our epoch.For this purpose,we will consider a well-known concept within the medieval economics in light of its modern reappropriation against the backdrop of transformative ethics:the meant concept is usury;the meant reappropriation is that of Ezra Pound.For reasons of space,the single steps will merely hint at ethical questions that require a much more careful investigation.Within these limits,the essay will therefore analyze certain traits of our current economic context while reconsidering its ethical dimension in the light of the concept of usury.The framework within which this analysis will be conducted is that of transformative ethics.

An Investigation into the Case of Multi-interpretation in Poetry Translation

In translating poems, it is very common that different people have quite different versions of the same poem. This paper therefore intends to expound upon the underlying factors from the perspective of Hermeneutics,by exploring the relationship between the textual meaning and the textual significance of a poem, as well as the relationship between the author's intention and the textual intention of a poem, aiming to explain the key element in translating poems—multi-interpretation.

A Study on Allegorical Exegesis in Medieval Literature

Christianity dominated the Middle Ages,thus produced the allegorical interpretation in the explanation of the Bible.Augustine fashioned a theory of signification that would dominate Western hermeneutics for ten centuries after his death.St.Thomas's work was seeking the marriage of reason and faith.Dante argued that the full four levels of meaning in Biblical exegesis was founded in secular poetry.

“诗言志”说的阐释学意义

中国阐释学思想源远流长，具有西方阐释学所不可替代的独特魅力。“诗言志”说体现了中国阐释学的一个基本观念：作者、作品与读者的一致性。正是此一观念决定了中国阐释学从一开始就不同于西方。

The Connotations and English Translations of Dao (道) in Chinese Classics

Translating, in light of philosophical hermeneutics, is a process of understanding and interpreting, of which understanding is the premise. Dao (道) is a core concept in traditional Chinese ideology with plentiful cultural connotations. While, it has been put into a variety of dictions. Only the thorough understanding of the language and culture in the source text leads to the appropriate production in translation.

Analysis methods in hermeneutic phenomenological research:interpretive profiles

Objective:To describe the development of interpretive profiles for a hermeneutic phenomenological research study.Methods:literature review was conducted to identify research that has used interpretive profiles.An initial interpretive profile was constructed.Results:The final outcome was an interpretive profile that contained a case summary and addressed the aims of the researcher’s study.The interpretive profile contained background material,coded excerpts,and interpretive comments.Conclusions:Interpretive profiles can assist emerging scholars in describing self-world relations and experiential variations within and across participants.Interpretive profiles can facilitate the writing of dissertations and manuscripts since the data is systematically archived and easily retrievable.