Critique of Forms of Life

Title Page......Page 2
Copyright......Page 3
Contents......Page 4
Preface......Page 7
Note on the Translation......Page 14
Introduction: Against “Ethical Abstinence”......Page 17
I. An Ensemble of Practices: Forms of Life as Social Formations......Page 55
1. What Is a Form of Life?......Page 57
1.1. Form of Life: Concept and Phenomenon......Page 58
1.2. Duration, Depth, Scope......Page 66
1.3. A Modular Concept of Forms of Life......Page 76
2. Forms of Life as Inert Ensembles of Practices......Page 80
2.1. What Are (Social) Practices?......Page 81
2.2. The Interconnected Character of Practices......Page 88
2.3. The Moment of Inertia......Page 103
2.4. Practice, Criticism, Reflection......Page 115
II. Solutions to Problems: Forms of Life as Normatively Constituted Formations......Page 117
3. The Normativity of Forms of Life......Page 120
3.1. Norms and Normativity......Page 122
3.2. Modes of Normativity......Page 127
3.3. Three Types of Norm Justification......Page 138
3.4. Lack of Correspondence with Its Concept......Page 155
4. Forms of Life as Problem-Solving Entities......Page 173
4.1. What Are Problems?......Page 175
4.2. Given or Made? The Problem with Problems......Page 181
4.3. Attempts at Problem-Solving: Hegel’s Theory of the Family......Page 189
4.4. Crises of Problem-Solving......Page 198
4.5. Second Order Problems......Page 209
III. Forms of Criticism......Page 219
5. What Is Internal Criticism?......Page 222
5.1. External and Internal Criticism......Page 223
5.2. The Strategy of Internal Criticism......Page 225
5.3. Advantages and Limits of Internal Criticism......Page 231
6. “To Find the New World through Criticism of the Old One”: Immanent Criticism......Page 239
6.1. Criticism of a New Type......Page 241
6.2. The Strategy of Immanent Criticism......Page 246
6.3. Potentials and Difficulties......Page 261
IV. The Dynamics of Crisis and the Rationality of Social Change......Page 268
7. Successful and Failed Learning Processes......Page 275
7.1. Change, Development, Learning, Progress......Page 276
7.2. Are Forms of Life Capable of Learning?......Page 281
7.3. Deficient Learning Processes......Page 285
7.4. Why Does History Matter?......Page 290
8. Crisis-Induced Transformations: Dewey, MacIntyre, Hegel......Page 293
8.1. Social Change as Experimental Problem-Solving......Page 295
8.2. The Dynamics of Traditions......Page 298
8.3. History as a Dialectical Learning Process......Page 301
9. Problem or Contradiction?......Page 304
9.1. Problems as Indeterminateness......Page 305
9.2. Crisis as a Break in Continuity......Page 309
9.3. Crisis as Dialectical Contradiction......Page 317
9.4. The Problem with Contradiction......Page 329
10. The Dynamics of Learning Processes......Page 336
10.1. Problem-Solving as an Experimental Learning Process......Page 339
10.2. The Dynamics of Traditions......Page 354
10.3. The Source of Progress and of Degeneration......Page 360
10.4. A Dialectical-Pragmatist Understanding of Learning Processes......Page 370
Conclusion: A Critical Theory of Criticism of Forms of Life......Page 387
Notes......Page 392
Index......Page 460