A Study Of The Critical Theory Of Charles Taylor Individualism

Individualism is an important issue of modernity.Many thinkers have criticized individualism.Among them,Charles Taylor’s critical theory of individualism has its own distinct political philosophy.This thesis focuses on Taylor’s critical theory of individualism from three aspects.To begin with,an interpretation of Taylor’s critical theory of individualism.Charles Taylor analyzes the current dilemma of individualism from a unique perspective of authenticity ethics.According to Taylor,the main manifestation of the dilemma of individualism is people’s self-isolation and self centeredness,as well as their indifference to social life,which leads to the narrowing and mediocrity of life and ultimately leads to political crisis.However,the emergence of the dilemma of individualism is a long and complicated process,which is rooted in the modern transformation of self-understanding,and in order to deal with the dilemma of individualism,it is an important way to maintain the ideal of authenticity.Secondly,it explores the internal relationship between Taylor’s critical theory of individualism and the theory of self consciousness in Hegel’s The Phenomenology of Spirit.Taylor’s critical theory of individualism draws its theoretical resources from Hegel’s philosophy.Taylor’s critical theory of individualism contains the self consciousness theory of The Phenomenology of Spirit,and the internal relations between the two are mainly embodied in two aspects.On the one hand,it is the internal connection between the modern transformation of self-understanding and the evolution of self-consciousness.On the other hand,it is the internal connection between modern identity and master-slave dialectics.The internal connection between the modern transformation of self understanding and the evolution of self consciousness can be divided into three levels: first,Taylor’s description of the modern transformation of self understanding and the evolution of self consciousness in Hegel’s The Phenomenology of Spirit,it’s all about the subject of self.Secondly,Taylor discusses the modern transformation of self understanding and the evolution of self consciousness in Hegel’s The Phenomenology of Spirit from the perspective of religion.Last,both Taylor’s account of the modern shift in self understanding and Hegel’s account of the evolution of self consciousness in The Phenomenology of Spirit are a dialectical development of consciousness.The internal relation between modern identity and master-slave dialectics is mainly embodied as follows: The basic connotation of master-slave dialectics presents the mutual transformation of self-consciousness and independence,this dialectic has implications for Taylor’s modern identity.And that inspiration is divided into two dimensions.The first dimension is the need for identification.Taylor,inspired by the master-slave dialectic,uses recognition to analyze how individuals achieve self-identification through effective dialogue with others.The second dimension is the need for an equal recognition at the social level and the rejection of unequal recognition similar to the master-slave relationship.Finally,the exploration of Taylor’s critical theory of individualism has three important implications for China.The first is that when Taylor examines the dilemma of individualism,he takes an idealistic approach to exploring the truth behind the dilemma.The method that is worthy of reference when analyzing China’s real problems.One can not ignore the ideals that underlie people’s behavior.Second,Taylor traces more than 2,000 years of intellectual history from Ancient Greece to modern times to understand the roots of modern identity.The historical perspective that is needed to analyze China’s current problems.Third,when Taylor criticized individualism,he emphasized the politics of modern identity and recognition,which are important theoretical resources to deal with the problem of cultural identity and enhance cultural self-confidence.