Glossary entry (derived from question below)
German term or phrase:
Hermetik
English translation:
hermetic obscurity
Added to glossary by
Trude Stegmann
Mar 4, 2014 19:41
10 yrs ago
German term
Hermetik
German to English
Art/Literary
Art, Arts & Crafts, Painting
Die Hermetik der Geschichte ergibt sich aus der Faulheit der Gegenwart.
Kontext: Einführungstext für einen Kunstkatalog
Kontext: Einführungstext für einen Kunstkatalog
Proposed translations
(English)
| 3 +5 | hermetic obscurity |
Trude Stegmann
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| 3 +1 | hermeneutics |
Lancashireman
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Change log
Mar 6, 2014 13:27: Trude Stegmann Created KOG entry
Proposed translations
+5
1 hr
Selected
hermetic obscurity
Considering that the source is not a work on history or the history of science, but an art catalogue: the term is used in this case in the sense of "airtight", metaphorically for "impenetrable" and "self-referential", or in the sense of "Hermetik" in the wider sense of teachings based on secrecy.
As I have not found a reference to the metaphorical use of "Hermeticism" in English, I would hesitate to translate the term simply with its direct English equivalent.
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Note added at 1 hr (2014-03-04 21:28:34 GMT)
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"Hermetic" refers literally to Hermes Trismegistus and to a corpus of esoteric writing loved by the alchemists, not to "Hermeneutics" as a theory of interpretation, the term derived from Greek "hermeneuo", "to explain/ translate/ interpret".
As I have not found a reference to the metaphorical use of "Hermeticism" in English, I would hesitate to translate the term simply with its direct English equivalent.
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Note added at 1 hr (2014-03-04 21:28:34 GMT)
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"Hermetic" refers literally to Hermes Trismegistus and to a corpus of esoteric writing loved by the alchemists, not to "Hermeneutics" as a theory of interpretation, the term derived from Greek "hermeneuo", "to explain/ translate/ interpret".
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Stephen Reader
: W/you - (impenetrability, *arcane-ness; inaccessibility*...) pending more context (w/Phil). Sounds like a quote, but a first browse for the entire sentence yielded nothing conclusive.
10 hrs
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Thank you. Also w/Phil. My impression: the author is a follower of hermetics himself :) .
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| agree |
Horst Huber (X)
18 hrs
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Danke, Horst!
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| agree |
Johanna Timm, PhD
: fully agree with your interpretation
21 hrs
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Ich freue mich - danke, Johanna.
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| agree |
Jim Tucker (X)
: just plain "obscurity" or "impenetrability"
3 days 20 hrs
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All fine with me. Thanks, Jim.
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| agree |
Helen Shiner
: It can mean the 'closed nature'. I think I would simply go with 'hermetic nature' of history.
7 days
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Thank you, Helen! 'nature' depending on context, I'd think.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you! "
+1
1 hr
German term (edited):
Hermetik > Hermeneutik
hermeneutics
I think this may be an error by the author - I would not suggest for one moment that the asker has misread the word.
Hermeneutics is about interpreting (or in this case, misinterpreting) scripture from the past. Hence the reference to laziness in the present.
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeneutik
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeneutics
"Hermeneutics /hɜrməˈnjuːtɪks/ is the theory of text interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts."
Hermeneutics is about interpreting (or in this case, misinterpreting) scripture from the past. Hence the reference to laziness in the present.
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeneutik
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeneutics
"Hermeneutics /hɜrməˈnjuːtɪks/ is the theory of text interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts."
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
gangels (X)
14 hrs
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Thanks, Klaus. Not for the first time, Dr Timm's endorsement swings it.
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| neutral |
Jim Tucker (X)
: How would this be an outgrowth of laziness? Only posit a typo as a last resort, particularly 3 letters. / Nothing wrong with the source sentence ; pretentiousness is not the same as sloppiness (!), and the asker's formulation is irrelevant.
3 days 16 hrs
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Source sentence is pretentious, therefore not unreasonable to suspect that author might have mixed up terminology, i.e. not a typo. Asker then went on to use ‘hermitic’ [sic] // Relevant insofar as typos rarely crop up individually. Thanks anyway.
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Discussion
http://www.linguee.de/search?tool=opensearch&query=hermetisc...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeneutics