Social Sciences in China Review

No.2, 2018

The “Interpretation” Tension in Western Hermeneutics and the Foundation of Historical Materialism of “Interpretation” （Abstract）

Zhang Wenxi

To construct a contemporary Chinese school of hermeneutics on the basis of “public interpretation,” it is necessary to make a profound reflection on Western hermeneutics and its current development. In the tradition of Western hermeneutics, there have always been tensions between “privacy” and “publicness,” “personal understanding” and “public understanding,” “method” and “anti-method.” Under these tensions, hermeneutics either is constrained in a particular discipline or becomes a product of scholars’“personal interpretation” or “personal understanding.” Therefore, the essence of hermeneutics does not lie in interpreting the absolute spirit of the world, but should be led to the “real-life process.” The definition of interpretation stems from a sophisticated judgment that comes from careful observation of society and history. According to Marxist principle of hermeneutics, if a person fails to understand the practical nature of social life, he will be unable to properly express the truth or implication of theoretical activities, which will possibly lead to mysticism. Therefore, for now, only Marxist hermeneutics based on historical materialism is truly contemporary hermeneutics.