Übersetzungspraxis und Hermeneutik im Spannungsverhältnis zwischen Vergangenheit und Gegenwart

The article moves from Schleiermacher’s reflection that the hermeneutic method is a necessary component in the life of a cultivated person insofar as we continuously interpret the (not especially complex) discourse of our interlocutors, which clarifies why Hermeneutics sometimes becomes banal if his further observation is not taken into account i.e. that Hermeneutics as a technical method can be applied when the object to be dealt with lends itself to being treated with hermeneutic methods. Translators became aware of the importance of Hermeneutics for their work when translation evolved into an academic discipline and had to set up a theoretical basis. The author argues that Hermeneutics can still be useful for translation if it is employed within certain limits, above all the social acceptability of the interpretation provided by the translator. Furthermore, the article highlights the problem of misunderstanding and not understanding as treated by Schleiermacher and also useful for the present as well (concept of instability). The author also underlines the importance of sociable conversation (geselliger Dialog), to be considered a hermeneutic dialogue, important in mapping the “right” interpretation.