Negation and recognition. Conditions of possibility for a dialogue

Abstract

A current difficulty within critical theory is that Habermas has had recourse to elements such as meaning, solidarity and motivation present in religion, as he noticed the lack of these aspects in modernity. The communicative disposition seems to require more than fulfilling a procedure. But those very meanings and motivations – with their beliefs and symbolic values – often appear as a stumbling block, since they could also mean a denial to admit secular perspectives. This particular question reveals a transversal problem: the problem of negation as a relevant aspect for a dialogue. This essay researches how negation not only implies a rejection but also to admit a certain kind of communicative demand, which the practice of recognition would be able to address. First, this paper reconstructs the kind of limit that negation implies, paying attention to communitarian positions. Second, it shows how two diverse philosophies, such as Habermas’ and the levinasian phenomenology, find a limit in the demand of recognition of the other showed in denial. Finally, an integrating answer to those questions will be offered with Honneth’s understanding of recognition.