Reconstruction On Modernity

J.Habermas' theory of modernity has become a focus of debate in intellectual circle in the west. Since the 1980's,Habermas has been concerned with the theme of modernity. He stood up his flag of modernity in contemporary theoretical circle that so various post-modern thoughts welled up in different fields, and pointed out the modernity is an unfinished project. He proposed that the modernity thought should be reconstructed, so that it could play its potentiality enough. The thesis tries to give a tentative exposition of Habermas' thought on modernity foundation reconstruction.Through explaining the relationship between Habermas and his modernity thought, in the first part of the thesis, the author attempts to set off the birth of the modernity thought, therefore, to draw the paradox of modernity thought as well as his diagnosis on the thought. Habermas believes that modernity is not a thing that we can give up at will. Although the project of modernity has its defects, it has the rational potentiality of social criticism. The question is not whether to insist on it or give it up, but to find a new way of its reconstruction and find the new power to realize it. In author's opinion, general pragmatics is the scratch or foundation for Habermas to reconstruct his modernity ideal. From the three validity foundations to the ideal linguistic situation, what Habermas' preparation is just a philosophical foundation for his communicative action theory. The traditional philosophy of subject, which relies on relation between subject and object, can not provide satisfactory justification for modernity. The ideal of modernity in the philosophy of consciousness is doomed to self-destruction. Only by turning to communicative reason, can we find the new foundation for modernity, overcome internal self contradiction. As the new mode of reconstruction theory of Habermas, communicative action theory is just the core of his theory. He thinks the conversion from the instrumental reason to communicative reason and the translation from...