Document Type : Article

Authors

1 Ph.D. Student (Candidate) in Private Law, Faculty of Administrative Sciences and Economics, ‎University, of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran‎

2 Associate Prof., Department of Law, Faculty of Administrative Sciences and Economics, ‎University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran‎

Abstract

In hermeneutics, which has undergone various phases, some thinkers like Schleiermacher view the interpreter's mission as an awareness of the author's individuality, while others, such as Gadamer (the leader of phenomenological hermeneutics), pursue true understanding within the interpretive horizon of the interpreter using a dialectical method. Principle 73 of the Iranian Constitution specifies the competent authority for interpreting ordinary laws, which is a legislative body (similar to Schleiermacher's hermeneutics), and also grants judges the authority to interpret in order to discern rights. Therefore, considering the legislator's provision for interpretation by judges, can one, when interpreting within the Iranian legal system, transcend the superficial layer of the law and reach the text beyond it according to Gadamer's hermeneutics? This research, employing a descriptive-analytical method and scrutinizing the existing legal logic based on Islamic Sharia, reveals that when interpreting laws derived from Sharia (including civil law and Islamic penal law), it is necessary for the interpreter to seek support from religious sources in their interpretive theory and cannot solely act according to their own mental horizon (regardless of the legislator's intent) while considering factors such as justice and fairness, as pursued in Gadamer's phenomenological hermeneutics.

Keywords

Main Subjects

  1. English

    1. A) Books
    2. Dilthey, W. (1996). Hermeneutics and the study of History. edited whit an introduction; by Rudolf A. Makkreel and Frithjof Rodi, the United States of America, by Princeton Academic Press.
    3. Dworkin, R. (1986). Laws Empire. Harvard university press.
    4. Francis J. Mootz III (2016). Law, Hermeneutics and Rhetoric. Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, London and New York.
    5. Gadamer, H-G (1998). Reason in the Age of Science. Frederick G. Lawrence, Cambridge: MIT Press.
    6. Gadamer, H-G (2004), Truth and Method. Joel Weinsheimer and Donald Marshall, London and New York: Continuum
    7. Gadamer, H- G (2007). The Gadamer Reader: A Bouquet of the Later Writings. Richard E. Palmer. 7. Evanston: Northwestern University Press.
    8. Gadamer, H – G (2001). Truth and Method. Translated in to English Jol Weinesheimer and Donald G. Marshal, sheed and Ward Pub, second edition, Fifth impression: London.
    9. Perelman, C. (1967). Justice. New York: Random House.
    10. Seebhom T.M (2004). Hermeneutics: Methodand Methodology. USA, Kluwer Academic Publishers.
    11. Schleiermacher, F. (2016). The Christian Faith. 3rd edition with an introduction by Paul T. Nimmo. Bloomsbury T&T Clark.

     

    1. B) Articles
    2. Goodrich, p., Legal Hermeneutics, in: Routledg Encyclopedia of Philosophy; Taylor and Francia, Available at: https://www.rep.routledge.com/articles/thematic/legal-hermeneutics/v-1.
    3. Kenneth R, T. (2011). Selected Theories of Constitutional Interpretation. Congressional Research Service: https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R41637.pdf
    4. Malpas, J. (2018). Dialogue and Phronesis in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Gadamer, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/gadamer/#DiaPhr.
    5. Soames Scott (2011). What vagueness and inconsistency tell us about interpretation, In book: Philosophical Foundations of Language in the Law, 31-57.

     

    References In Persian & Arabic:

    1. A) Books
    2. Aghaei, K. (2013). schools of interpretation in law on the basis of Legal hermeneutics. second edition, Tehran: Mizan (In Persian).
    3. Ahmadi, B. (2004). Structure and Hermeneutics. 8th edition, Tehran: new step (In Persian).
    4. Ahmadi, B. (2006). The Text structure and textural interpretation. 8th edition, Tehran: Nashremarkaz (In Persian).
    5. Akhund Khorasani, M. K. (1988). Kefaiya al-Asul. Qom: Al-Al-Bayt Institute Le ahiya al-Torath (In Arabic).
    6. Al-Sharif, M. M. (2014). The Logic of Laws. 3rd Edition, Tehran: Publishing Company (Sahami Publishing (In Persian).
    7. Al-Sharif, Mohammad Mahdi (2019). Logic of Laws. fifth edition, Tehran: Sahami Publishing (In Persian).
    8. Azad, A. (2012). Qur'an interpretation and classical hermeneutics. Qom: Bostan Kitab (In Persian).
    9. Esfahani, M. H. (1993). Nahayya al-Daraya fi Sharh al-Kafayah. Qom: Al-Al-Bayt Institute Le ahiya al-Torath (In Arabic).
    10. Gadamer, H-G (2016). Hermeneutics, Religion, and Ethics. (translated by: Shahabuddin Amirkhani), first edition, Tehran: Parse Book Translation and Publishing Company (In Persian).
    11. Hasani, H. (2010). Factors for understanding text, Tehran: Hermes (In Persian).
    12. Hashemi, M. (2006). Fundamental Rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran - Droit Constitutionnel Iranien, Vol.1, seventh edition, Tehran: Mizan (In Persian).
    13. Hashemi, S. M. (2006). Fundamental Rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Vol.2, eleventh edition, Tehran: Mizan (In Persian).
    14. Kalinoski (1994). Interpretation of Laws: Legal and Logical Rules. (Translated by: Dr. Hasan Habibi), First Edition, Tehran: Information Institute (In Persian).
    15. Jafari-Tabar, H. (2009). The interpretative philosophy of law. first edition, Tehran: Publishing Company (In Persian).
    16. Katouzian, N. (1996). Introductory course on civil rights (inheritance). first edition, Tehran: Nashr Dadgostar (In Persian).
    17. Katouzian, N. (1998). Philosophy of Law (sources of law). Vol.2, first edition, Tehran: Sohami Publishing (In Persian).
    18. Katouzian, N. (2008). Philosophy of Law. second edition, Vol. 3, Tehran: Sahami Publishing Company (In Persian).
    19. Katouzian, N. (2009). The Experimental Method of Research in Law. First Edition, Tehran: Publishing Company (In Persian).
    20. Katouzian, N. (2014). Philosophy of Law. (Logic of Law), Fifth Edition, Tehran: Publishing Company (In Persian).
    21. Keivanfar, S. (2011). Philosophical Foundations of Law Interpretation. first edition, Tehran: Publishing Company (In Persian).
    22. Mohagheq Karki (1993). Jami al-Maqasid fi Sharh al-Qasas. second edition, Qom: Al-Bayt Institute (peace be upon them) (In Arabic).
    23. Naini, M. H. (2003). Fawaed al-Asul. (edited by: Muhammad Ali Kazemi Khorasani), 8th edition, Qom: Al-Nashar al-Islami Institute (In Arabic).
    24. Naini, Muhammad Hossein (1999). Ajvad al-Tagharirat. (edited by Seyyed Abul Qasim Khoei), first edition, Qom: Sahib Al-Amr Institute (AJ) (In Arabic).
    25. Nobahar, R. (2015). Linguistic Discussions and Maxim of the Interpratation of Texts. First Edition, Tehran: Mizan (In Persian).
    26. Omid Zanjani, A. A. (2006). Basics of Qur'an Interpretation Methods. Tehran: Ministry of Culture and Guidance (In Persian).
    27. Qutb, S. (1999). in the shadows of the Qur'an. Tehran: Ehsan (In Arabic).
    28. Sadr, M. B. (2009). Lessons in the Science of the Principles of Jurisprudence. second edition, Qom: Dar al-Alam (In Arabic).
    29. Selden, R., & Widdowson, P. (2005). A Reader's Guide to Contemporary Literary Theory. (translated by: Abbas Mokhber), third edition, Tehran: New Design (In Persian).
    30. Shahabi, M. (2017). Philosophy of Law. 2nd edition, Tehran: Research Institute of Islamic Culture and Thought (In Persian).
    31. Shimsa, S. (2006). literary criticism. Tehran: Mitra (In Persian).
    32. Vaezi, A. (2009). An Introduction to Hermeneutics. 6th edition, Tehran: Culture and Thought Research Institute (In Persian).
    33. Vaezi, A. (2019). Legal Hermeneutics. first edition, Qom: Bostan Ketab (In Persian).

     

    1. B) Articles
    2. Azad, A., Azad, T., & La‘L Roshan, F. (2016). The Common Foundations of Principles of Jurisprudence and Classical Hermeneutics in Text Comprehension. Fiqh and Usul, 48(2), 9-28. Doi: 10.22067/FIQH.V48I25.34533 (In Persian).
    3. Azad, A., Vaezi, A., & Naghizadeh, H. (2016). A Critique of methodologism from the perspective of Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics. Essays in Philosophy and Kalam, 48(1), 9-30. Doi: 10.22067/PHILOSOPHY.V48I1.34493 (In Persian).
    4. Aghaey taogh, M. (2007). Review of Guardian Council’s Method of Interpretation in the Shadow of Philosophical Hermeneutics of Gadamer. The Journal of Islamic Law Research, 8(1), 33-59. Doi: 10.30497/LAW.2012.1284 (In Persian).
    5. Afshar, S. (2018). The Author-Oriented Approach in Interpreting the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Public Law Knowledge Quarterly, 7(20), 49-70 (In Persian).
    6. Almasi, M., & Vaezi, A. (2022). The Foundations & Consequences of Legal Textualism in Modern Judicial Systems. Public Law Knowledge Quarterly, 11(35), 73-92. Doi: 10.22034/QJPLK.2022.243 (In Persian).
    7. Parimi, A. (no date). Hermeneutics and its effect on the understanding of religious texts. Hozha and University Quarterly, (39) (In Persian).
    8. Ricoeur, P. (1997). Hermeneutic Task (Translation: Mohammad Hossein Latifi). Nama Philosfeh, (2), 25-48 (In Persian).
    9. Simai Saraf, H. (2010). Logic of modern law and principles of jurisprudence. Journal of Legal Research Quarterly, (55), 139-164 (In Persian).
    10. Shahabi, M. (2019). From legal absolutism to legal relativism Criticizing Bruno Oppetit's analysis of antinomic legal trends to the paradigm of legal modernity. Public Law Studies Quarterly, 49(4), 1089-1108. At: https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2018.245782.1616 (In Persian).
    11. Fayyazi, M. (2022). Ayatollah Muḥammad Ḥusayn Nāʾīnī's Text Understanding Theory as Compared with Schleiermacher's Text Understanding Theory. Principles of Jurisprudence, 5(7), 39-62 (In Persian).