neutical exercise.66The outcome of the comparative study of law tends to be a practical understanding which is applied to changing situations so that original knowledge (both foreign and own) is itself further developed and utilised on the basis of various interests of knowledge.67Yet, this would not mean abandoning aspirations of being seen as a serious scholarly undertaking.68 Finally, this transformation of epistemology may prove to be too much to ask for, because the desire to create a truly scientific non-national discipline of law is so deeply rooted in the vocational self-understanding of modern academic law.One needs only to remember the famous words of Rudolph von Jhering some 150 years ago when he warned of the degradation of legal science into a national doctrine.69 Ironically, his words still linger as a form of warning instead of encouragement to abandon one’s own nationally accustomed legal vision while studying law. re cht swi s s e n scha f t al s j ur i st i sch e dok t r i n 128 66 See also Geoffrey Samuel,“Comparative Law as a Core Subject”, 21 Legal Studies (2001) 444-459, pp.448-449.However, this is not an argument for any specific type of hermeneutics or rhetoric.Rather, this merely points towards a general direction. 67 This application is, of course, a kind of mediation between foreign law and familiar law. See also Gadamer (1994) pp.307-311(concerning the concept) and329-330 (especially in the field of law). 68 Cf. Hyland (2009) p. 63. 69 von Jhering, Geist des römischen Rechts auf den verschiedenen Stufen seiner Entwicklung, Band I (Breitkopf & Härtel, Leipzig 1852) pp. 14-15 (“Die Rechtswissenschaft ist zur Landesjurisprudenz degradiert, die wissenschaftlichen Gränzen fallen in der Jurisprudenz mit den politischen zusammen. Eine demüthigende, unwürdige Form für eineWissenschaft”).
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