The Cambridge Companion to Habermas

This volume examines the historical and intellectual contexts out of which Habermas's work emerged.

Jurgen Habermas is unquestionably one of the foremost philosophers writing today. His notions of communicative action and rationality have exerted a profound influence within philosophy and the social sciences. This volume examines the historical and intellectual contexts out of which Habermas' work emerged, and offers an overview of his main ideas, including those in his most recent publication. Amongst the topics discussed are his relationship to the Frankfurt School of critical theory and Marx, his unique contributions to the philosophy of the social sciences, the concept of 'communicative ethics', and the critique of post-modernism. New readers and non-specialists will find this the most convenient, accessible guide to Habermas currently available. Advanced students will find a conspectus of recent developments in the interpretation of Habermas.

1. Introduction Stephen White; 2. The heritage: Habermas and Adorno Romand Coles; What remains of Marx? Nancy Love; 3. Communicative rationality: philosophical and social scientific implications; The idea of communicative rationality Georgia Warnke; Critical theory as a research programme John Dryzek; 4. Normative democracy; Practical discourse and communicatve ethics J. Donald Moon; Rechtstheorie Kenneth Baynes; Universalism and the situated critic Max Pensky; 5. Democracy; Democracy and self Mark Warren; Discourse and democractic practices Simone Chambers; 6. The defense of modernity; Habermas' critique of Nietzsche and his progeny Tracy Strong; Modernity and postmodernity Axel Honneth.

This volume examines the historical and intellectual contexts out of which Habermas' work emerged, and offers an overview of his main ideas, including those in his most recent publication. New readers and non-specialists will find this the most convenient, accessible guide to Habermas currently available.