Loading...

The Contemporary Theory of the Public Sphere

by Patrick O’Mahony (Author)
©2013 Monographs XVI, 510 Pages

Summary

Normative democratic theory does not lie securely above societal argumentation but is instead a crucial part of it. We need to know not just how the public should reason, but how it actually does reason, or could reason in better foreseeable circumstances. After all, given the general societal and cosmopolitan challenges that we face, the health and the necessary extension of democracy fundamentally depends on the reasoning capacities of the public. The concept of the public sphere is intrinsic to understanding this process, but it has long been limited by its division into the twin approaches of normative argumentation in democratic theory and empirical-theoretical application in the social sciences.
This book aims to go beyond this entrenched divide to show how democratic theory can become empirically applicable and the social sciences normatively relevant. It does this by linking democratic theory to the theory of society and relating both to a cognitive-communicative account of public culture. The book contributes significantly to exchanges within and between sociology, philosophy, cultural and communication studies, political science, and cognate disciplines. It also aims to address a long-established concern of critical theory by combining empirical and normative perspectives to advance the goal of a better society.

Details

Pages
XVI, 510
Year
2013
ISBN (PDF)
9783035304985
ISBN (Hardcover)
9783034301466
DOI
10.3726/978-3-0353-0498-5
Language
English
Publication date
2013 (August)
Keywords
democratic theory process circumstances
Published
Oxford, Bern, Berlin, Bruxelles, Frankfurt am Main, New York, Wien, 2013. XVI, 510 pp., 9 fig., 2 tables

Biographical notes

Patrick O’Mahony (Author)

Patrick O’Mahony is Senior Lecturer in Sociology in the School of Sociology and Philosophy at University College Cork, Ireland. His work has been dedicated for many years to clarifying fundamental normative and empirical-theoretical dimensions of public discourse and public culture, in fields such as nationalism and trans-nationalism, the environment, and science and technology.

Previous

Title: The Contemporary Theory of the Public Sphere
book preview page numper 1
book preview page numper 2
book preview page numper 3
book preview page numper 4
book preview page numper 5
book preview page numper 6
book preview page numper 7
book preview page numper 8
book preview page numper 9
book preview page numper 10
book preview page numper 11
book preview page numper 12
book preview page numper 13
book preview page numper 14
book preview page numper 15
book preview page numper 16
book preview page numper 17
book preview page numper 18
book preview page numper 19
book preview page numper 20
book preview page numper 21
book preview page numper 22
book preview page numper 23
book preview page numper 24
book preview page numper 25
book preview page numper 26
book preview page numper 27
book preview page numper 28
book preview page numper 29
book preview page numper 30
book preview page numper 31
book preview page numper 32
book preview page numper 33
book preview page numper 34
book preview page numper 35
book preview page numper 36
book preview page numper 37
book preview page numper 38
book preview page numper 39
book preview page numper 40
527 pages