Editing Hermeneutics (section)

=== Sociology ===
In [[sociology]], hermeneutics is the interpretation and understanding of social events through analysis of their meanings for the human participants in the events. It enjoyed prominence during the 1960s and 1970s, and differs from other interpretive schools of sociology in that it emphasizes both context<ref>Willis, W. J., & Jost, M. (2007). Foundations of qualitative research; Interpretive and critical approaches. London: Sage. p. 106</ref> and form within any given social behaviour.

The central principle of sociological hermeneutics is that it is only possible to know the meaning of an act or statement within the context of the discourse or [[world view]] from which it originates. Context is critical to comprehension; an action or event that carries substantial weight to one person or culture may be viewed as meaningless or entirely different to another. For example, giving the "thumbs-up" gesture is widely accepted as a sign of a job well done in the United States, while other cultures view it as an insult.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/View-Articles/body-speaks.aspx|title=NACADA > Resources > Clearinghouse > View Articles|website=nacada.ksu.edu}}</ref> Similarly, marking a piece of paper and putting it into a box might be considered a meaningless act unless it is put into the context of an election (the act of putting a [[Ballot|ballot paper]] into a box).

[[Friedrich Schleiermacher]], widely regarded as the father of sociological hermeneutics believed that, in order for an interpreter to understand the work of another author, they must familiarize themselves with the historical context in which the author published their thoughts. His work led to the inspiration of Heidegger's "[[hermeneutic circle]]" a frequently referenced model that claims one's understanding of individual parts of a text is based on their understanding of the whole text, while the understanding of the whole text is dependent on the understanding of each individual part.<ref>{{cite book|url= https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/schleiermacher/#4 |title= Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher |last= Forster |first= Michael |publisher= Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy|year= 2017 }}</ref> Hermeneutics in sociology was also heavily influenced by German philosopher [[Hans-Georg Gadamer]].<ref>Charles A. Pressler, Fabio B. Dasilva, ''Sociology and Interpretation: From Weber to Habermas'', SUNY Press, 1996, p.  168.</ref>