Gramsci & Machiavelli (was Re: Ethical foundations of the left)

Kenneth MacKendrick kenneth.mackendrick at utoronto.ca
Wed Aug 1 13:41:29 PDT 2001


At 12:52 PM 8/1/01 -0400, you wrote:
>>>We can't even make the rulers behave differently, not to mention
>>>overthrow them, by urging them to read Habermas & reminding them of the
>>>virtue of the ISS.
>>
>>The ISS is not a virtue. You have misunderstood, rather fatally I might add.
>
>That depends on how you define virtue. It appears that cognitive
>consensus between Habermasians & non-Habermasians on key terms in
>discussion will be impossible, constituting an outcome unwelcome in
>Habermas's theory.
>
>Yoshie

Define virtue however you want. If it means idealizations inherent to communicative processes irregardless of the intentions of participants then, by all means, the ISS is a virtue.

As for actual consensus, it is irrelevant to Habermas's theory whether a consensus actually emerges. The fact that it is anticipated by those committed to discursively redeeming their validity claims is enough.

ken



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