The Fact
Hermeneutical injustice occurs when gaps or prejudicial flaws in society’s shared interpretive concepts leave someone unfairly disadvantaged in understanding or communicating an important part of their own social experience.
What This Means
Sometimes the problem is not that a person lacks an experience or evidence. The shared vocabulary for recognizing and explaining the experience may be missing or distorted.
Sources
- Fricker, M. (2007). Epistemic Injustice, Chapter 7, “Hermeneutical Injustice.” Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198237907.003.0008