Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
|
Loading... Legitimation Crisisby Jurgen Habermas
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.  stillatim | Dec 29, 2013 |  no reviews | add a review
In this enormously influential book, Jurgen Habermas examines thedeep tensions and crisis tendencies which underlie the developmentof contemporary Western societies and develops a powerful analysisof the legitimation problems faced by modern states. Habermas argues that Western societies have succeeded to someextent in stabilizing the economic fluctuations associated withcapitalism, but this has created a new range of crisis tendencieswhich are expressed in other spheres. States intervene in economiclife and attempt to regulate markets, but they find themselvesconfronted by increasing and often conflicting demands. Asindividuals become increasingly disillusioned, the state is facedwith the possibility of a mass withdrawal of loyalty or support - a'legitimation crisis'. Widely recognized as a classic of contemporary social andpolitical analysis, Legitimation Crisis sheds light on arange of issues which are central to current debates, from thedecline of class conflict and the disillusionment with establishedpolitical institutions to the crisis of the welfare state. Itremains essential reading for students of sociology, politics andthe social sciences generally. No library descriptions found. |
Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)301.045Social sciences Social Sciences; Sociology and anthropology Sociology and anthropology standard subdivisions of sociology and/or anthropology Special topicsLC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.29)
Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wikipedia in English (1)
1
But that organized capitalistic world went away shortly after this was first published; then capitalism did its thing again. Now, of course, the world of government intervention and so on is back. Where to from here?
Habermas' approach is no longer tenable. It was tailored for a kind of organized capitalism which was still operated along class-war lines: capitalism had to be saved from revolution. Today, capitalism is not threatened by revolution (despite what Fox News would have you believe), but by its own dynamics and blind spots.
What is interesting is the idea that economic crises are displaced onto politics when government steps in to the economy. It seems likely that this will happen again. The next time the economy tanks, governments will be thrown out of power. But whereas Habermas argued that this was rational (since the crisis, on his view, is the fault of government), today economic crises are not the fault of governments; political turmoil is an ideological response to economic problems. Habermas thought the world was entering a post-liberal-capitalist society. It wasn't true then and it isn't true now. Instead, we have completely immoral governments taking over from completely immoral businesses. Business is driven by profit, government is driven by electability, and we all suffer.
Habermas' solution to all problems is to invoke communicative ethics. According to this, communication is possible only if there is rationality. Since communication is possible, rationality exists. It is also necessarily 'interested:' rationality leads to emancipation.
Parts of this project seem salvageable (especially the link between reason and interest). But the foundations are too wobbly.
A pretty good reading guide, only a few pages long, can be had at:
http://www.arasite.org/hablc.htm (