FYI-Re:Hermeneutics and Orientalism

Submitted by Angela Class (United States), Jun 13, 2007 at 23:05

Dhimmi, since it's obvious that neither of these has played any role in your interpretation of "Islam" and is they are completely foreign concepts to you, let me clarify Maria's post for you:

Hermeneutics can be described as the development and study of theories of interpretation and understanding of texts. In contemporary usage in religious studies, hermeneutics refers to the study of the interpretation of religious texts. Above and beyond the mere basic translation and literal interpretation of words and symbols, hermenuetics involves cultivating the ability to understand things from someone else's point of view, and to appreciate the cultural, historical, and social forces that may have influenced their outlook, and applying this understanding for guidance in interpreting the meaning of written texts and symbolic artifacts.

Dhimmi, this is a field for experts, many of whom disagree with your oversimplified, fundametalist understanding of Islam, even some who are native speakers of Arabic, not that that should matter.

My opinion is not merely by own, but informed by theirs.

If you want to know what many expert linguists think about this subject,

you can do your own research, as I have.

It's obvious that you keep no counsel but your own. Yours must be a lonely life.

By the way, "Orientalism" is a traditional term for the study of Near and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, and peoples, by Western scholars. Modernly this has been replaced in most North American universities, by the term "Asian Studies" and localized to specific regions, such as, Middle Eastern or Near Eastern Studies, etc. This reflects the fact that the Orient is not a single, monolithic region, but rather a broad area encompassing multiple civilizations. It also broadens the meaning to acknowledge the fact that many experts in these fields are not Westerners, so that no unrelated, indirect reference to the "Occident" is necessary. The new term is generally considered more respectful.

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