A Critical Analysis of Philosophical Foundations of Gadamer's Hermeneutics

Gadamer's hermeneutics continues Heidegger's hermeneutics and seeks to recognize the nature of understanding and its existential structure. However, contrary to Heidegger, Gadamer deals with such issues as understanding artistic works and texts, interpretation of historical affairs and methodology of human sciences without seeking to provide a new methodology for these sciences. It can be said that Gadamar's philosophical hermeneutics which is related to anthropology is among the main philosophical issues. The present paper discusses his views about man and understanding, man and history, and man and language. Then criticizes these views based on Islamic view. Although two last titles (man and history, and man and language) are subtitles of the first one (man and understanding), they are divided in order to make possible the analysis and criticism of his views about history, culture and language.