Methodological Approach to Classical Texts; A Critical Review of The Foundations of Modern Political Thought

Abstract

Exploring the humanistic intellectual ideas, one should first of all get acquainted with the different methodological approaches, for which some authors are the exemplars in reality. This is true for explorers in the domain of political thought, especially the one who are interested in hermeneutical methodological approaches. They would surely find Quentin Skinner’s approach towards the author-context hermeneutical methodology (applied in The Foundations of Modern Political Thought) very interesting. Due to its author’s unique methodological approach towards understanding features of political thought, the publication has been considered as one of most influential texts in the contemporary academic exploration in political thought. Indeed, the author, Quentin Skinner, not only provides valuable information about the how-ness of development of modern political thought, but also makes evaluation of his author-context hermeneutical methodology possible. Reviewing the book’s features, including the shape and content, the present study attempts to critically explore the methodological foundations and different aspects of Skinner’s author-context hermeneutics, and thus, evaluate The Foundations of Modern Political Thought.