The Theory of Communicative Action originated in 1977 German political crisis

Evidence

Habermas has explained why he came to write the book, whose central focus is the modernization as a process of rationalization, in late 1977: ‘The tense German political situation, which was becoming more and more like a pogrom following Schleyer’s kidnapping, drove me out of the theoretical ivory tower to take a stand.’ Liberal democracy seemed to be under threat both from extreme left — the terrorists of die Red Army Fraction - and extreme right, whose demands for greater repression gained respectability thanks in part to the revival of conservative thought. — Alex Callinicos, Against Postmodernism, 376

Categorization

• SHARE: For anyone who knows Habermas’s work — the concrete political spur (Schleyer kidnapping, RAF, German Autumn) behind a supposedly ‘pure’ theory book is a striking detail.
• XREF: connects to: Habermas grounds universalizing reason in the dialogical structure of communication. — David Harvey, The Condition of Postmodernity: An…, 356; Historical investigation reveals the false limits of universal communication theory — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 595

Broader Connections

• Habermas grounds universalizing reason in the dialogical structure of communication. #expands (0.80) — David Harvey, The Condition of Postmodernity, 356
• Historical investigation reveals the false limits of universal communication theory #qualifies (0.75) — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 595