Subject: HAB: Kant & Luhmann
Date: Mon, 05 Nov 2001 12:53:50 


Dear Iver,

This post is to modestly recognize what I sense are the sentiments expressed 
in your post. The Habermas/Luhmann *conflict* can - I think - be considered 
almost as a lovers' tiff.... :-) As my supervisor explained to me recently, 
too often you *hate* the ones you *love* !!!
I think this can also be applied to the Habermas/Foucault *conflict*. As 
well as the Habermas/Derrida *problem*. There is a great deal of common 
ground between ALL of these theoretical combatants that it almost brings 
into disrepute the notion that theoretical discourse ( as against everyday 
discourse) is capable of realizing understanding/agreement.

The tiresome Leninist/Trotskyist et al scholasticisms spring to mind!

Still; I guess that's the nature of the beast ;-) It is reassuring that 
critical theory/emancipatory reason is so devoted to alleviating the 
problems human kind faces...otherwise we would all be out of a job.

Anyway, to attempt to deal with the overt point of your post; only the most 
resilient pre-1970s Habermasian would fail to see the *concessions that JH 
has made to systems theory in _BFN_. However, and this is where I think we 
diverge, the systems model Habermas employs in _BFN_ continues to reject 
central theses of Luhmann's autopoietic model and relies instead on a fairly 
*crusty* mechanical/cybernetic systems model ( just the ones I like!!!). JH 
is explicit in _BFN_. What explodes  closed social subsystems (a la Luhmann) 
is the medium of ordinary language. JH holds onto this distinction 
tenaciously, although - as you correctly point out - the emphasis upon 
*communication* as the crucial currency of the social ontology is to a 
degree shared.

There are other significant rhetorical differences of course. JH regards 
Luhmann's analysis as *still* drawing upon a basic metabiological metaphor. 
Yet - I would suggest - JH has NEVER come to proper terms about what 
place/function the biological stratum has in his own theory construction.

At the risk of delivering my own stream of consciousness about several 
related matters I will close. Nice to hear from you Iver. Trust your 
research is progressing well.

Cheers,

MattP.


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