V. V. Rozanov and the hermeneutics tradition in Russia

Abstract

This article is about the hermeneutical tradition in Russian culture of the 19th and 20th centuries. The main direction in this tradition was biblical, philology and legal hermeneutics. Hermeneutics is one of most influential traditions in modern philosophy including the conceptions of such figures as F. Schleiermacher, W. Dilthey, M. Heidegger, H.-G Gadamer, and P. Ricoeur. The general preconditions causing their emergence, and also the similar phenomena in other cultures (Germany especially). The central reality for the hermeneutic tradition is the reality of language. Language is a main means of human communication and a certain way of passing on some social experience from one generation to another. The paper researches various problems of philosophical knowledge: ontology, social philosophy, aesthetics. The author examines the relevant aspects of philosophical hermeneutics by V. V. Rozanov (1856–1919). There are revealed similarities and differences between the Rozanov’s concept and other authors (Russian and European) in the article. The author shows the inclusion of Rozanov’s hermeneutical conception in Russian cultural tradition. The author points out that these concepts should be attributed to Aristotelian philosophical currents. Of course, Rozanov was the most important figure this tradition in Russia. Refs 14.