What does Hannah Arendt have to do with Jürgen Habermas?

from Increase resolution on the concept of deliberation What does Hannah Arendt have to do with Jürgen Habermas?

• How does Hannah Arendt. relate?

The relationship between [[Jürgen]] Habermas and Hannah Arendt is notable for the similarities and differences in their ideas on [[careful deliberation]] and the [[public sphere]]. Arendt particularly emphasized "[[deed]] (action)" and "[[publicness]]" and taught that the public sphere is formed when people act and exchange ideas together. While this overlaps with Habermas' "public sphere" and "communicative rationality," there are some differences between their approaches.

• Differences in understanding of the public sphere

  • Arendt emphasized political action and participation in the public sphere as a place where humans “act” together. In her view, the acts in this public sphere are creative, as they reveal individual freedom and diverse identities. Habermas, on the other hand, viewed the public sphere as a place for dialogue and deliberation of opinions and stressed the importance of logical and rational consensus building.

• Action and Discussion Positioning

  • Arendt highly values the action (action) itself as an expression of public freedom, and deliberation is seen as part of the action. Habermas, however, places greater emphasis on the process of deliberation through dialogue, which contributes directly to social legitimacy and consensus building. In other words, for Arendt, the act is a form of self-expression and political participation; for Habermas, the goal is consensus building through deliberation.

• Differences in political ideals

  • Arendt idealized a small political community, like the ancient Greek polis, in which people could act and debate freely. She valued diverse individuals “living together” (vita activa) and believed that politics was at the core of human life. Habermas focused on a more contemporary, larger society, taking the position of pursuing democratic legitimacy through communication and deliberation in the broader public sphere.
  • It’s very likely that the appropriate form of collective decision-making here will differ depending on the size of the group to begin with, so if the assumed size is different, then the conclusion will change. - Group Size and Collective Decision Making

Against this background, Habermas and Arendt, while overlapping in some respects regarding the public sphere and deliberation, interpret it from different approaches and perspectives. In particular, the difference between Arendt’s emphasis on the importance of action and Habermas’ emphasis on the process of deliberation is a point of contrast in their thought.

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