RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CONCEPS: UNDERSTANDING, INTERPRETATION, EXPLANATION

Abstract

The purpose of the work is to explore the relationship between scientific and humanitarian knowledge, as well as to investigate the contradictions that may arise when applying the scientific method in the humanities. The methodology relies on the phenomenological tradition and hermeneutics as methods of humanitarian research, enabling the analysis of phenomena of human existence through scientific discourse. The main focus is on the concepts of phenomenological hermeneutics based on the ideas of thinkers such as Paul Ricoeur and Martin Heidegger. Scientific novelty lies in comparing scientific and humanitarian approaches, which form the basis of understanding the world. Revealing the differences and similarities between them allows for a better understanding of the nature of knowledge and promotes further development of both approaches. Thus, this research is significant for the further advancement of science and humanities, as well as for a deeper understanding of how humans perceive and interpret the surrounding world. Anthropology is claimed to be able to serve as a starting point for understanding how these two opposing approaches set the boundaries of their own research. The dilemma of methods leads to the following situation: leaning towards the naturalistic method, we obtain a World without humans; meanwhile, hyperbolizing the humanitarian approach, we get humans without the world. Although this paradox is quite contradictory, at certain moments, it accurately conveys the specificity of the two opposing sides. Conclusions. Through the analysis of the categories of «understanding», «explanation», «interpretation» and «symbol» it has been revealed that the scientific approach, oriented towards objectivity and empirical data, is not always effective in the humanities. The humanitarian method, focused on understanding cultural, historical, and moral aspects, allows for the revelation of unique aspects of human experience.