Habermas’s epistemic conception of democracy
Some reactions to McCarthy’s objections
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11340893 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Stéphane Courtois (Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2004 |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue | 7 |
| Pages | 842-866 |
| Publication date | 2004-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Philosophy & Social Criticism (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0191-4537 • E-ISSN: 1461-734X |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/0191453704047011 |
| OpenAlex | W2052428614 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
The article aims at assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the objections to Habermas’s epistemic conception of democracy raised by Thomas McCarthy in some of his essays. The author defends two ideas. First, he contends that McCarthy is mistaken in believing that democratic debates would not be a matter of consensus. In this regard, two arguments are raised, showing that the search for agreement and consensus by citizens in public forums can hardly be dismissed and that consensus can be invested with many meanings in democratic life. Secondly, however, the author approves McCarthy when challenging Habermas’s epistemic claims regarding his theory of democracy. Not all democratic deliberations can be analysed in epistemic terms, in particular, debates on values. The pitfalls of any epistemic account of this form of deliberation are pointed out in the end of the essay
Deliberation · Deliberative democracy · Democracy · Democratic Theory · Epistemology · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Critical Theory and Philosophy · Law · Philosophy · Political Philosophy and Ethics · Pragmatism in Philosophy and Education
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,06 |
| Citation span | 2008 - 2008 (1) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |