Reading Habermas: Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere dissolves Habermass monolithic stylization to access his seminal distinction between the purely political polis of antiquity, and the modern public sphere. Deconstructing the mold of Structural Transformations narrative about a rise and fall of the bourgeois public sphere in modernity allows us to understand the ideology-critical methodologies of Habermass theory reconstruction of Kants ideal of the liberal public in the context of the French Revolution. Readers realize that Habermass interpretation of a sociological and political category with the norms of constitutional theory and intellectual history causes the collapsing of norm and description he acknowledged in 1989 and thus frequent misunderstandings about the historical validity of Structural Transformations ideal-type derived from Condorcets absolute rationalism and Kants unofficial philosophy of history. Specifically, the guide explains that Habermass key construct of a morally pretentious rationality of the bourgeois public sphere entirely depends on the claim about natural laws harmoniously regulating the economy. While neoliberalism still maintains this claim, Hegel decisively destroyed it already in 1821.
Recenzijos
This important and timely book brings out the centrality of the public sphere to Habermas's overall project and shows how and why he has recently returned to the topic with ever-growing urgency. -- William Outhwaite, Newcastle University Jürgen Habermas' Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere is undeniably one of the most significant works of political and social analysis written in any language since 1945. And there may be no scholar anywhere who knows more about Habermas' study than Michael Hofmann. Hofmann not only offers a provocative analysis of the strengths and possible weaknesses of Habermas' famous account of the public sphere, but he also creatively suggests why it remains relevant for understanding politics and society. -- William E. Scheuerman, Indiana University For those concerned about the rise of post-truth politics and the apparent erosion of constitutional norms in well-established constitutional democracies, Jürgen Habermass classic Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere is essential reading. Guided by his insight that the health of a democracy is connected to the health of its public sphere, Habermas provides a valuable examination of the nature and conditions of constitutional government and a critique of the degeneration of public argument into modes of mass manipulation. Hofmanns Reading Habermas: Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere is perhaps the most detailed reading guide in English for Habermass book. Hofmann places it under the microscope and links Habermass study to a broader intellectual history, the development of neoliberalism, and particular historical events. Reading Habermas is an extraordinary piece of Habermas scholarship and a valuable contribution to discussions about the relation between political economy and democratic theory. Highly recommended. Graduate students and faculty. * Choice Reviews *
Preface: The Social Media Transformation of the Public Sphere and the
Crisis of Neoliberal Democracy
Introduction: The Unique Significance of Structural Transformation of the
Public Sphere for the Theory and Practice of Democratic Deliberation
Chapter 1: Structural Transformations Normative Theses about a Dissolution
of Domination in the Bourgeois Public Sphere
Chapter 2: Habermass Dialectical Use of Ideology Critique to
Counterfactually Assert a Moment of Historical Credibility for the Bourgeois
Ideal of the Public Sphere
Chapter 3: Structural Transformations Cold War Origins: Habermass Defense
of Kantian Rationality, Human Rights, and the Enlightenment
Chapter 4: Participatory Democracy versus Political Manipulation: The Role of
Habermass Celebrated Coffee Houses (Todd Gitlin) in the Modern Public
Sphere
Chapter 5: Understanding Habermass Public Sphere Concept by Dissolving its
Monolithic Stylization: Structural Transformations Interpretation of a
Sociological and Political Category with the Norms of Constitutional Theory
and Intellectual History
Chapter 6: Structural Transformations Tacit Model Case of the Bourgeois
Public Sphere: The French Revolution, Kants Unofficial Philosophy of
History, Condorcet Absolute Rationalism, and Schillers Expressive
Subjectivism
Chapter 7: The Achilles Heel of Schillers Moral Stage and Structural
Transformations Moral Politics: A Dependency of Smiths Political Economy
and Kants Constitutional Law on Mandevilles Moral Paradox of Bourgeois
Society
Chapter 8: Habermass Unexplained Methodology: A Complex Ideology-Critical
Procedure
Chapter 9: The Result of Structural Transformations Dialectical Use of
Schmitts Civil War Topos and Kosellecks Process of Criticism: A Tension
between Developmental History and Ideology-Critical Procedure
Conclusion: Renewing the Human Rights Perspective in the Political Public
Sphere
Michael Hofmann is professor of Communication and Multimedia Studies at Florida Atlantic University.
