Things Needed to Get Better

Conversations with Stefan Müller-Doohm and Roman Yos

Inbunden, Engelska, 2025

359 kr

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In this book Jürgen Habermas offers a wide-ranging reflection on his life and work and on the factors that shaped the development of his thought. He discusses the motives behind his work, the circumstances under which it emerged and the changes it has undergone over the course of his long and productive career. He speaks about the events and the texts that played a decisive role in his thinking and he recounts key encounters with colleagues. The image that emerges is that of a richly intertwined network of relationships which covers large swathes of the intellectual map of the twentieth century and reaches through to the present day.Looking back at the development of his thought, Habermas discusses the specific historical circumstances that shaped his generation, identifies key experiences with his intellectual mentors, explores recent historical tendencies and political beliefs and talks about his own scholarly works and their reception. Time and again we see the normative impulse that lies behind so much of Habermas’s work: ‘I view the attempt to make the world even the tiniest bit better, or even just to be part of the effort to stave off the constant threats of regression that we face, as an utterly admirable motive.’This autobiographical self-reflection by one of the greatest philosophers of our time will be of interest to a wide readership.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2025-11-28
Mått216 x 21 x 144 mm
Vikt360 g
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor192
FörlagPolity Press
ISBN9781509567270
ÖversättareWieland Hoban

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"Philosopher, social theorist, political gadfly – no single phrase can suffice to summarize the enormous intellectual impact of Jürgen Habermas in the modern era. His contributions to critical theory have transformed our thinking both within and beyond the precinct of critical theory. In this wide-ranging interview, Habermas reflects on his development and his legacy. A truly indispensable volume."Peter E. Gordon, Harvard University"poignant"Financial Times"It might be tempting to think that the ideas and values that Jürgen Habermas has championed over his long career are coming to the end of their useful lives, and that his causes might not outlive him – tempting, but completely wrong. Though Vladimir Putin may wish to rule like a tsar, he still needs to appear to legitimate his rule democratically, even if elections in Russia are currently a sham. And when Donald Trump addresses the UN, he cannot say that he knows climate change to be true, but does not care; instead, he presents his policies in favour of fossil fuels as rational, even though the science he offers in their defence is evident nonsense. We live in a Habermasian world, in which political problem-solving must be based on norms of communicative reasoning, even if today we languish in a feeble version of that world."Times Literary Supplement"For those of us who have been reading and thinking about Habermas since undergrad, Things Needed to Get Better provides considerable clarification on his influences and how they fit together... He comes across as the academic's academic, yes, but a living and human one."Liberal Currents