The Critique of Postmetaphysical Thinking: Habermas and the History of

Description

Simon Susen’s trilogy offers a systematic account of Jürgen Habermas’s Also a History of Philosophy . It provides a comprehensive overview of the central issues at stake in this magnum opus and, crucially, assesses its most significant limitations and shortcomings. Susen shows how Habermas’s approach to the history of philosophy seeks to reconstruct the genealogy of postmetaphysical thinking... Read more

Simon Susen’s trilogy offers a systematic account of Jürgen Habermas’s Also a History of Philosophy. It provides a comprehensive overview of the central issues at stake in this magnum opus and, crucially, assesses its most significant limitations and shortcomings.

Susen shows how Habermas’s approach to the history of philosophy seeks to reconstruct the genealogy of postmetaphysical thinking by tracing the tension-laden relationship between faith and knowledge back to the major developments brought about during the Axial Age. The trilogy examines how Habermas’s latest project invites us to reconsider not only classical antinomies – such as faith vs. knowledge, the sacred vs. the profane, religion vs. science – but also the role of philosophy in the twenty-first century, particularly with regard to its capacity to overcome the tension between ‘ideologization’ [Verweltanschaulichung] and ‘scientization’ [Verwissenschaftlichung]. This endeavour, Susen argues, sheds light on the extent to which the emancipatory potential of rational freedom, far from being reducible to a mere product of the Enlightenment, has been present throughout human history – most notably in the processes of ‘the linguistification of the sacred’ in advanced civilizations during the first millennium BCE. Informed by a meticulous analysis of the Epilogue to the original German‑language edition – which contains valuable insights into Habermas’s retrospective reflections on his main arguments and engages with the reception of his ambitious theoretical enterprise – this definitive trilogy serves as an essential guide to one of Habermas’s seminal works.

The third volume, The Critique of Postmetaphysical Thinking, presents a set of critical reflections on Auch eine Geschichte der Philosophie and provides a rigorous assessment of Habermas’s endeavour.

This trilogy is for all those in the social sciences and humanities studying and researching classical and contemporary social theory, the sociology of knowledge, the sociology of religion, political sociology, cultural sociology, social and political philosophy, epistemology, the philosophy of religion, the philosophy of history, the philosophy of language, and the history of social and political thought.

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Author(s)

Biography

Simon Susen is Professor of Sociology at City St George’s, University of London. He is Associate Member of the Bauman Institute and, together with Bryan S. Turner, Editor of the Journal of Classical Sociology.

Critics' Reviews

‘At an age when many devote themselves to writing their memoirs, Jürgen Habermas undertook the formidable task of retracing the history of Western philosophy. He did so not as a detached scholar but, rather, as a way of engaging with the vast intellectual edifice he himself had built and of situating it within that broader history. For us, as sociologists, there remained an urgent need for the rigorous and authoritative work that Simon Susen now provides – one that repositions this history of philosophy not only within the Habermasian corpus but also within the landscape of the contemporary social sciences. Only Simon Susen’s intellectual boldness and wide-ranging expertise could meet this challenge, bridging the widening gulf within our disciplines between philosophy, social theory, and empirical research.’

Luc Boltanski, Directeur d’études, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, Paris, France

‘Simon Susen’s comprehensive and deeply thoughtful engagement with Jürgen Habermas’s magnum opus, Also a History of Philosophy, is far more than a commentary on an important work of contemporary critical thought. In unpacking Habermas’s project, Susen offers an engrossing and incisive reflection on the intellectual legacies we inherit – and on the ways in which they shape our self-understanding as moderns.’

Simone Chambers, Professor of Political Science, University of California, Irvine, USA

‘A welcome and important book. Simon Susen offers the clearest account available in English of Habermas’s views – not only on the history of philosophy but also on modernity, the relationship between faith and knowledge, and the future of freedom and the Enlightenment project. Perhaps the pre-eminent thinker of our era, Habermas has engaged with both public affairs and the most profound intellectual questions for more than 70 years. Most scholars who believe they understand his perspective have dipped only into one earlier phase of his work; Susen sheds light on the whole.’

Craig Calhoun, University Professor of Social Sciences, Arizona State University, USA

‘This superb book combines a meticulous and very readable summary of Habermas's Auch eine Geschichte der Philosophie with a comprehensive presentation of constructive critical comments. The summary part draws a number of connections which are not explicit in Habermas's text or are lost in the details of his argument, while the critical comments should shape subsequent discussions on the relationship between faith and knowledge.’

William Outhwaite, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, Newcastle University, UK

The Critique of Postmetaphysical Thinking Habermas and the History of Philosophy, Volume III

Description

Table of Contents

Author(s)

Biography

Critics' Reviews

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