Arendt On The Decline And Reconstruction Of The Public Sphere

Hannah arendt is the first philosopher in the history of political philosophy who systematically and creatively thinks about the public sphere.The concept of public sphere was first seen in Arendt’s book The Human Situation.Its most prominent organizing principle is the phenomenological analysis of three kinds of human activities,and it is believed that these three kinds of human activities constitute the fundamental situation of human beings,among which the action corresponds to the public sphere.Looking at Arendt’s thoughts,it can be said that the rise and fall of the public sphere is the main line that affects all her works: she put forward the concept of the public sphere through reflection on totalitarianism,and hoped to explore ways to rebuild the public sphere by looking for the reasons for its decline.Among them,the theory of "the evil of mediocrity" was the turning point of her whole thinking process,and then her focus gradually turned to revolutionary theory and spiritual life,and tried to influence people’s practice through their hearts.In view of this,this paper discusses the rise and fall of "public sphere" with the theory of "the evil of mediocrity" as the starting point.Through the reflection on the two historical events "the birth of totalitarianism" and "the rise of social sphere",it is concluded that the disappearance of action caused by "the evil of mediocrity" is an important reason for the decline of public sphere.Therefore,to rebuild the public sphere,we must first resist the "evil of mediocrity" and restore the spiritual life of "thinking,judging,forgiving and committing" to ensure the plurality of people.Secondly,through the practical support of revolutionary action and Council system,the spirit and action should be truly combined to ensure citizens’ extensive political participation.However,because Arendt’s basic idea of purifying politics always excludes economic and social life from political life,his "evil of mediocrity" thought and "public sphere" theory inevitably have certain limitations,which need our dialectical examination.