Etymology about what is Hermeneutics A term that appeared in ancient Greece, hermeneutics comes from "hermeneuen", the art of interpreting the correct meaning of a text. An irreverent figure in Greek mythology, the god Hermes was in charge of interpreting the will of the gods and transmitting it to mortals, fulfilling the role of messenger. This reference brings a relationship with the concept of hermeneutics.

What is Hermeneutics

It is an area of knowledge that includes interpretation as its central point, which has aroused scholars to develop their understandings by proving the objective of hermeneutics, while others have immersed themselves in the aspect of creating methods to interpret texts, although there is consensus as to the general objective of hermeneutics is to translate the correct understanding of a message.

Some scholars say that the best result in interpretation lies in knowing the author better, others assert that the meaning must come exclusively from the text.

Hermeneutic circle

This concept consists in that: "The parts can only be understood when we understand the whole, but the whole can only be understood by understanding the parts", thus the hermeneutic circle states that the interpreter must visit and revisit the work he intends to interpret establishing a variation of connections between the parts and the whole.that the hermeneutic circle does not imprison the interpreter in an endless spiral, making a correct understanding impossible.

Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834), German religious man, a reference in the hermeneutics ambience, because he defended that this study should have a universal connotation that could serve as a basis for other disciplines such as biblical hermeneutics and legal hermeneutics.

He assured that this was a study that was formatted as "the art of interpretation", emphasizing that it was not simply something creative or subjective, but a technique that enabled a correct interpretation.

Objective of Schleiermacher's hermeneutics

Schleiermacher asserted that the aim of hermeneutics was to understand the text, as the author did, in order to then understand it better than he did.

To reach this level, he suggested two paths; the first would be to try to understand the author's language, that is, the way the author communicated through his expressions in terms of grammar. The second path goes into how the author thought in the context of his culture and time, that is, the psychological side.

With this it is understood that Schleiermacher breaks the hermeneutic circle when he states that first the grammatical interpretation is made in order to then make the psychological interpretation, that is, first analyze the parts, in order to then analyze the whole, leaving the infinite spiral of interpretations.

Schleiermacher's methods of interpretation and what is Hermeneutics

Methods of interpretation Schleiermacher postulates about two methods of achieving interpretation. To the first method he gave the name divinatory, which corresponds to when we interpret something using our understanding of the world and of the human being.

The second method is the comparative one, when the author's work is compared to other authors from the same period and with similar genres, but it is essential in either method to know the language, to seek a minimum knowledge of the author, of the sociocultural influences of his time, and to identify to whom the message is directed, that is, who the audience would be.

All this to apply the methodology with quality. Difference between Hermeneutics and Exegesis For a better understanding, let's draw a parallel between the two concepts.

Exegesis

This is an explanation based on a critical interpretation through a commentary or dissertation on the meaning of words, grammatical constructions, as well as the sociocultural conditions of the time, meaning, symbolism, and representations of the analyzed text.

Hermeneutics

Hermeneutics: in the simplicity of its context, it is understood as the art of interpretation, possessing forms of view in the philosophical, legal, cultural, historical, theological, sociological, and other fields of knowledge.

Hermeneutics as science

Hermeneutics as a science and some dogmatic positions Besides a technique, hermeneutics is a science according to Wilhelm Dilthay (1833-1911), German theologian, he conceived hermeneutics as the science of interpretation, where to support his point of view, he developed the "theory of understanding" that contextualized the following; "Hermeneutics is rule-driven understanding in language, and is thus a science, the science of interpretation."

Jurgen Haberman (1929), German philosopher and sociologist, postulated that one hermeneutics cannot be applied to everything because people in their subjectivities have different experiences. He advocated the introduction of the critical method so that hermeneutics would not be taken over by relativism.

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Jacques Derrida (1930-2004), Algerian philosopher, for him there is no truth, but countless perspectives, therefore hermeneutics must be deconstructive, in view of the countless interpretations for the same text, which may go against the very thesis of the text. Hans-Georg Gadamer (1900-2002), German philosopher, stated that the purpose of hermeneutics is to uncover the truth contained in the text and connect it to life.

Contemporary Hermeneutics

Contemporary hermeneutics is not only limited to the application of the interpretation of texts, but of all forms of understandable content, which contemplates verbal and non-verbal forms as to the investigation to reach interpretation.

Conclusion

The relevance of hermeneutics covers a very broad field, since only the act of interpreting does not translate the applicability of this study. Every methodology presupposes criteria and discipline, despite the subjectivity pointed out by some renowned authors cited in this work.

The most important thing is that, regardless of the points postulated by hermeneutic scholars, it proposes thinking, contained in the context of language, this brings a rather peculiar responsibility due to the interpretative requirement, whether it is centered on what the author represents or on the vision and understanding of the interpreter.

A context analyzed and thought through with the acceptance that there is a horizon full of possibilities will certainly incur a wide range of interpretations, it is like a story within other stories in the same format or location.

The present article was written by Romero Silva of Recife - PE ( [email protected] br), psychoanalyst with a master's degree.