Questions of Criticism: Habermas and Foucault on Civil Society and Resistance

Abstract

Explores representations of civil society & the modern welfare state expounded by Michel Foucault & Jurgen Habermas to demonstrate how they offer different ways of thinking politically about today's challenges, particularly in terms of resistance. The historical context & current usage of the concept of civil society are examined, along with how Habermas links civil society to an understanding of criticism by viewing it as a privileged locus of criticism outside of governance. Conversely, Foucault's civil society only emerges in the context of a governable domain of the social. Further, Habermas's notion of reconstructive criticism encompasses the idea of civil society in service of emancipatory social science, while Foucault uses genealogies in which concepts are to be interrogated regarding their use in practical systems. It is contended that an alternative framework based on the concept of civil society does not adequately address problems of welfare state relations. While Habermas elaborates on the terms of contemporary political reason, Foucault's more productive approach questions concepts & challenges individuals to reconsider their limits. 54 References. J. Lindroth