Is There a Single Right Interpretation?

Michael Krausz

Published by Penn State University Press 2002

Is There a Single Right Interpretation?

Michael Krausz

In the series Studies of the Greater Philadelphia Philosophy Consortium

https://doi.org/10.1515/9780271032344

Overview
Contents

About this book

Is there a single right interpretation for such cultural phenomena as works of literature, visual artworks, works of music, the self, and legal and sacred texts? In these essays, almost all written especially for this volume, twenty leading philosophers pursue different answers to this question by examining the nature of interpretation and its objects and ideals.

The fundamental conflict between positions that universally require the ideal of a single admissible interpretation (singularism) and those that allow a multiplicity of some admissible interpretations (multiplism) leads to a host of engrossing questions explored in these essays: Does multiplism invite interpretive anarchy? Can opposing interpretations be jointly defended? Should competition between contending interpretations be understood in terms of (bivalent) truth or (multivalent) reasonableness, appropriateness, aptness, or the like? Is interpretation itself an essentially contested concept? Does interpretive activity seek truth or aim at something else as well? Should one focus on interpretive acts rather than interpretations? Should admissible interpretations be fixed by locating intentions of a historical or hypothetical creator, or neither? What bearing does the fact of the historical situatedness of cultural entities have on their identities?

The contributors are Annette Barnes, Noël Carroll, Stephen Davies, Susan Feagin, Alan Goldman, Charles Guignon, Chhanda Gupta, Garry Hagberg, Michael Krausz, Peter Lamarque, Jerrold Levinson, Joseph Margolis, Rex Martin, Jitendra Mohanty, David Novitz, Philip Percival, Torsten Pettersson, Robert Stecker, Laurent Stern, and Paul Thom.

Author / Editor information

Krausz Michael :

Michael Krausz is Milton C. Nahm Professor of Philosophy at Bryn Mawr College. He is the author of Rightness and Reasons: Interpretation in Cultural Practices (1993) and Limits of Reason (2000), and he has edited several previous volumes, including The Interpretation of Music: Philosophical Essays (1993).

Reviews

“Interpretation is as irritating as it is fascinating. To think that a work like Hamlet or The Upanishads has only one correct interpretation seems arrogant. To allow more than one brings us perilously close to contradiction. This collection brings together a series of searching and subtle papers that illuminate the metaphysical, epistemological, phenomenological, and action-theoretical facets of interpretation, providing resources for a more nuanced understanding of interpretation and its objects.”
—Catherine Z. Elgin, Harvard University

“However, the volume has come into being, the essays are well-written and pleasant to read.
Krausz as editor, and as an author whose writings are well-known in this area, offers the reader what must be a difinitive presentation of the current range of views on the subject.”
—Thora Ilin Bayer, American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly

“It is hard to think of a single work that explains so clearly what these issues are and why they are important. The scholarship is excellent, and the introductory material is especially clear. Highly recommended for all collections.”
—J. White, CHOICE

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	v
Introduction Michael Krausz Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
PART I
1 The Sun Also Rises: Incompatible Interpretations Alan Goldman Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	9
2 ‘‘One and Only One Correct Interpretation’’ Joseph Margolis Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	26
3 Rightness and Success in Interpretation Paul Thom Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	45
4 Intentionality, Meaning, and Open-Endedness of Interpretation Jitendranath Mohanty Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	63
5 Are There Definitive Interpretations Laurent Stern Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	76
PART II
6 Against Critical Pluralism David Novitz Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	101
7 Interpretation and Its Objects Michael Krausz Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	122
8 Constructive Realism and the Question of Imputation Chhanda Gupta Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	145
9 Interpretation and the Ontology of Art Robert Stecker Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	159
10 Can Novel Critical Interpretations Create Art Objects Distinct from Themselves Philip Percival Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	181
PART III
11 The Literary Work as a Pliable Entity: Combining Realism and Pluralism Torsten Pettersson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	211
12 The Multiple Interpretability of Musical Works Stephen Davies Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	231
13 Right Answers: Dworkin’s Jurisprudence Rex Martin Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	251
14 Truth in Interpretation: A Hermeneutic Approach Charles Guignon Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	264
15 Appreciation and Literary Interpretation Peter Lamarque Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	285
PART IV
16 Hypothetical Intentionalism: Statement, Objections, and Replies Jerrold Levinson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	309
17 Andy Kaufman and the Philosophy of Interpretation Carroll Noeol Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	319
18 Whose Play Is It? Does It Matter Annette Barnes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	345
19 Tossed Salad: Ontology and Identity Susan L. Feagin Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	360
20 Wittgenstein and the Question of True Self-Interpretation Garry L. Hagberg Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	381
Contributors Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	407
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	411