Jurgen Habermas: A Philosophical-Political Profile (20th Century Political Thinkers) - Softcover

Matu?tik's remarkable new study of Jurgen Habermas provides a three-dimensional portrait of a finely etched figure set against the uneven ground of Germany's postwar struggle to transform itself into a robust democracy. A compelling presentation of the drama of critical intellect at its most incisive. -- Martin Jay, University of California, Berkeley Martin Matu?tik's book is not only an insightful and rigorous introduction to the systematic aspects of Habermas's work but also an extremely valuable reconstruction of the intellectual trajectory of the author under scrutiny, and a thorough presentation of the cultural background from which his theoretical project emerged. -- Ernesto Laclau, University of Essex Exceptional book! Matu?tik's work offers a new model of writing a biography of an engaged philosopher and the first integral narrative of Habermas's political life. Under the shadow of May 1945, Habermas, member of the great skeptical generation, could not lead the generation of May 1968, because he judged it as if it were an expression of left fascism. Similarly, after the events of November 1989 he remained blind to many negative aspects of the American imperial hegemony. Yet without doubt, Habermas is a unique witness of Germany's 20th century, a philosopher whose most significant production is not exhausted by his splendid writings, but rather finds its full embodiment in his political life as honest search for truth. -- Enrique Dussel, Universidad Autonoma Metroplitana-Iz (Mexico City) Martin Matu?tik has written a fair summation and incisive critique of the work of Jurgen Habermas. He brings an original interpretation of earlier thinkers of critical theory such as Adorno and Benjamin and thinkers associated with postmodernism such Foucault and Derrida to deepen our understanding of both the significance and limitations of Habermas's work. The book is clearly written and will make an important addition to the Habermas scholarship. -- Drucilla Cornell, Rutgers University In Matu?tik's book Habermas's thought distinctively meets his life (within the vast relevant scholarship). The thought is thoroughly treated. * Perspectives on Political Science * An innovative and provocative work that raises new questions and offers intellectual insights. -- Stephen Eric Bronner, Rutgers University Offers a very detailed account of the evolution of Habermas's political ideas and an exhaustive study of his quest to relate his theorizing to changing political issues. The book includes a very extensive list of Habermas's writings and a full bibliography of sources. Recommended for graduate and research collections. * CHOICE * Matustik approaches his subject with an appealing combination of enormous respect and shrewd scepticism. This portrait effectively captures the formative episodes of a figure who has persistently sought to define the boundaries of responsible opposition. * New Left Review *

This philosophical-political profile offers the first of its kind intellectual reconstruction of HabermasOs defining existential and historical situations, his generational profile and interventions, his impact on as well as the discontents that his life work generates in others. Written as a lively dramatic engagement with major themes of HabermasOs adult life in postwar Germany, the entire study occupies a unique place between the standard genres of a biography and a theoretical commentary on the oeuvre. In this work the reader is taken on a journey with Habermas through the 20th-century intellectual and political history from the defeat of Nazism, to the Cold War restoration of the '50s, the student movement of the '60s, the historical revisions of the '70s and '80s, the hope of the post-Wall era after 1989, all the way to the controversies surrounding the allied wars of intervention against Iraq and Serbia in the 1990s. Both beginning and advanced readers of 20th century socio-political thought gain greater insight into the existential, political, and philosophical influences that proved to be formative of HabermasOs writing and activism in the public sphere. The first part of the study emphasizes the unfolding, linear view of HabermasOs postwar history, punctuated by the major existential and political situations of his young adult life from 1945 to 2000. The second part returns to the same time-span in order to reconstruct HabermasOs mature post-Wall intellectual profile in contrast to the profiles of the preceding generation of 1945 and the later protesting generation of 1968. The third part examines the tremendous Habermas-effect exercised on 20th-century thought and public policy. The concluding chapters discuss critically the lasting place as well as the limits of HabermasOs achievement in contribution to a development of new critical theory. The book is enhanced by an introduction that provides a historical and conceptual background to the major