Bøger af Axel Honneth

”Axel Honneth er en vigtig teoretisk begrebsstærk figur i det sociologiske felt”. - Johnny Lauritsen, Akademiske Sygeplejersker "Axel Honneth's recognition theory constitutes one of the most ambitious philosophical undertakingsof our time" - Nancy Fraser, New School for Social ResearchDen tyske sociolog Axel Honneths Kamp om anerkendelse udkom første gang på tysk i 1992 og har i dag status som et uomgængeligt socialfilosofisk hovedværk.Med afsæt i en kritisk rekonstruktion af Hegels ungdomsskrifter suppleret af nyere socialpsykologiske teorier skitserer Honneth vilkårene for en ny kritisk samfundsteori. Det teoretiske omdrejningspunkt er begrebet anerkendelse.Honneth analyserer de formelle betingelser for selvrealisering, dvs. det gode liv, og viser hvordan den enkeltes selvtillid, selvagtelse og selvværd er afhængig af anerkendelse - i privatlivet, som retssubjekt og i det sociale liv i bred forstand. Honneth undersøger menneskers indbyrdes anerkendelsesrelationer og fremhæver de sociale relationers betydning for udviklingen af vores identitet.Samtidig viser Honneth, hvordan manglende anerkendelse slår igennem i form af en række patologiske bevidsthedsforstyrrelser, der udstiller det moderne samfunds skrøbelighed og peger på den stadige samfundsmæssige ubalance mellem individuel frihed og social anerkendelse.Axel Honneth (f. 1949) er Jürgen Habermas' efterfølger på Johann Wolfgang Goethe Universität i Frankfurt. Han er den første siden Max Horkheimer, som både er professor i socialfilosofi på Institut für Philosophie og har direktørposten på det verdenskendte Institut für Sozialforschung. Han regnes i dag for den ledende tredjegenerationsteoretiker fra den såkaldte Frankfurterskole.Oversat fra tysk efter Kampf um Anerkennung af Arne Jørgensen.

”Axel Honneth er en vigtig teoretisk begrebsstærk figur i det sociologiske felt”. Johnny Lauritsen, Akademiske Sygeplersker Den tyske filosof Axel Honneth efterfulgte i 1996 Jürgen Habermas som professor på Johann Wolfgang Goethe Universitetet i Frankfurt. Han regnes i dag som den førende repræsentant for tredje generation af den såkaldte Frankfurterskole, der siden grundlæggelsen i 1931 har udgjort et intellektuelt kraftcenter i tysk og europæisk filosofi. I Behovet for anerkendelse præsenteres han for første gang på dansk. Udvalget rummer en række centrale tekster inden for kritisk teori, filosofi, sociologi og psykologi, der tilsammen giver et godt overblik over forfatterskabet udvikling og centrale temaer. Teksterne kredser især om begrebet anerkendelse og menneskers indbyrdes anerkendelsesrelationer. Honneth analyserer menneskets muligheder for at realisere egne evner og færdigheder, dvs. den enkeltes mulighed for at opnå identitet. I denne proces spiller selvtillid, selvrespekt og selvværd en helt central rolle. Mangel på anerkendelse kan føre til depression og sygdom, og Honneths bidrag til socialfilosofien er derfor af etisk karakter: Hvori består det gode liv for det moderne menneske? Honneth skriver på godt og ondt i en jargon og en stil, der er karakteristisk for Frankfurterskolen og den kritiske teori. Men for dem, der er fortrolige med eller vil lade sig udfordre af den kritiske tænkning, er der meget at hente. Behovet for anerkendelse er redigeret og forsynet med forord af Rasmus Willig, cand.scient.soc., ph.d.-stipendiat, RUC. Teksterne er oversat fra tysk og engelsk af Mogens Chrom Jacobsen.

Socialismen har dannet grundlag for modstand mod kapitalismens bagsider i mere end 150 år. Men selv om vi i dag er vidne til stigende ulighed, og selv om der er udbredt utilfredshed med dele af den finansielle sektor og politisk fokus på store virksomheders skatteunddragelse, er det få, der vil fremhæve socialismen som en god løsning. Hvordan kan det være, at socialismen har mistet sin kraft? Og hvad skal der til for at forny den i det 21. århundrede?Axel Honneth argumenterer for, at socialismen har mistet sin appel, fordi den er funderet i industrisamfundet og kun i mindre grad svarer til nutidens samfund. Hvis socialismen skal give mening i dag, er det derfor nødvendigt at reformulere den, så den svarer til vor tids samfund. Kun på den måde vil vi kunne genoplive dens grundlæggende ambition: at skabe et økonomisk system, der er foreneligt med solidaritet og frihed.

In this pathbreaking study, Axel Honneth argues that "the struggle for recognition" is, and should be, at the center of social conflicts. Moving smoothly between moral philosophy and social theory, Honneth offers insights into such issues as the social forms of recognition and nonrecognition, the moral basis of interaction in human conflicts, the relation between the recognition model and conceptions of modernity, the normative basis of social theory, and the possibility of mediating between Hegel and Kant.

Axel Honneth is best known for his critique of modern society centered on a concept of recognition. Jacques Ranciere has advanced an influential theory of modern politics based on disagreement. Underpinning their thought is a concern for the logics of exclusion and domination that structure contemporary societies. In a rare dialogue, these two philosophers explore the affinities and tensions between their perspectives to provoke new ideas for social and political change.Honneth sees modern society as a field in which the logic of recognition provides individuals with increasing possibilities for freedom and is a constant catalyst for transformation. Ranciere sees the social as a policing order and the political as a force that must radically assert equality. Honneth claims Ranciere's conception of the political lies outside of actual historical societies and involves a problematic desire for egalitarianism. Ranciere argues that Honneth's theory of recognition relies on an overly substantial conception of identity and subjectivity. While impassioned, their exchange seeks to advance critical theory's political project by reconciling the rift between German and French post-Marxist traditions and proposing new frameworks for justice.

Theories of justice often fixate on purely normative, abstract principles unrelated to real-world situations. The philosopher and theorist Axel Honneth addresses this disconnect, and constructs a theory of justice derived from the normative claims of Western liberal-democratic societies and anchored in morally legitimate laws and institutionally established practices. Honneths paradigmwhich he terms a democratic ethical lifedraws on the spirit of Hegels Philosophy of Right and his own theory of recognition, demonstrating how concrete social spheres generate the principles of individual freedom and a standard for what is just. Using social analysis to re-found a more grounded theory of justice, he argues that all crucial actions in Western civilization, whether in personal relationships, market-induced economic activities, or the public forum of politics, share one defining characteristic: they require the realization of a particular aspect of individual freedom. This fundamental truth informs the guiding principles of justice, grounding and enabling a wide-ranging reconsideration of its nature and application.

In this rich interpretation of the history of critical theory, Axel Hormeth clarifies critical theory's central problems and emphasizes the social factors that should provide it with a normative and practical orientation.

Axel Honneth has been instrumental in advancing the work of the Frankfurt School of critical theorists, rebuilding their effort to combine radical social and political analysis with rigorous philosophical inquiry. These eleven essays published over the past five years reclaim the relevant themes of the Frankfurt School, which counted Theodor W. Adorno, Max Horkheimer, Walter Benjamin, Jurgen Habermas, Franz Neumann, and Albrecht Wellmer as members. They also engage with Kant, Freud, Alexander Mitscherlich, and Michael Walzer, whose work on morality, history, democracy, and individuality intersects with the Frankfurt School's core concerns.Collected here for the first time in English, Honneth's essays pursue the unifying themes and theses that support the methodologies and thematics of critical social theory, and they address the possibilities of continuing this tradition through radically changed theoretical and social conditions. According to Honneth, there is a unity that underlies critical theory's multiple approaches: the way in which reason is both distorted and furthered in contemporary capitalist society. And while much is dead in the social and psychological doctrines of critical social theory, its central inquiries remain vitally relevant. Is social progress still possible after the horrors of the twentieth century? Does capitalism deform reason and, if so, in what respects? Can we justify the relationship between law and violence in secular terms, or is it inextricably bound to divine justice? How can we be free when we're subject to socialization in a highly complex and in many respects unfree society? For Honneth, suffering and moral struggle are departure points for a new "e;reconstructive"e; form of social criticism, one that is based solidly in the empirically grounded, interdisciplinary approach of the Frankfurt School.