Communicative Action in History

Bibliographic Data

ID2397582
AuthorsSean D Stryker (University of California, Berkeley, corresponding author)
Year2000
Volume3
Issue2
Pages215-234
Publication date2000-05-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEuropean Journal of Social Theory (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1368-4310 • E-ISSN: 1461-7137
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/13684310022224778
OpenAlexW2122903662
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited55

Critics of Jürgen Habermas's theory of communicative action argue that he has failed to recognize the extent to which moral argumentation is grounded in particular historical contexts, cultural traditions, collective identities, or social lifeworlds. Although he has engaged in a series of strategies aimed at acknowledging the role of particularistic considerations without abandoning his primary commitment to ethical universalism, Habermas has not succeeded in meeting all of the objections of his critics. This paper treats the contradiction between formal and substantive rationality, which lies at the heart of the debate, as an empirical phenomenon within the social world. It argues that the antinomy of formal and substantive rationality plays a central role in historical processes of social change. Through critical argumentation, social actors deliberate on contradictions among strategic, moral, and ethical standards of validity, and they struggle to resolve these contradictions through collective action and the reform of laws, policies, and institutions. Examples are drawn from US political history to substantiate the argument, and some questions are raised for further research

Antinomy · Argumentation theory · Communicative action · Contradiction · Epistemology · Political science · Politics · Rationality · Social science · Sociology · Universalism · Critical Theory and Philosophy · Law · Rhetoric and Communication Studies · Social Media and Politics

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub