Dados is one of the most widely-read social sciences journals in Latin America. Created in 1966, it publishes innovative works, originating from academic research, by Brazilian and foreign authors. Edited by IESP-UERJ, it aims to reconcile scientific rigor and academic excellence with an emphasis on public debate based on the analysis of substantive issues of society and politics.
Dados vol. 48 n. 3 Rio de Janeiro jul./set. 2005
Abstract
The article identifies a central problem in the methodological proposal of Quentin Skinner for studying the history of political thought: the equivalence assumed by the author between oral and written communications. This leads him to adopt the theory of speech acts as the backbone for his methodological project. Use of the treatment given by Paul Ricoeur to the phenomenology of writing imposes differences between these two types of communications and thereby highlights the improprieties generated by Skinner's assumed equivalence. The article discusses why the critical approach towards this English author's methodology is more productive and systematic than many of the critiques aimed at him, including those inspired by the thinking of Hans-Georg Gadamer.
Keywords: Quentin Skinner, history of political thought, methodology, Paul Ricoeur, interpretation
DOI: 10.1590/S0011-52582005000300007
From Cambridge to the world, historically: reviewing the methodological contribution of Quentin Skinner
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