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Has J. Habermas overcome Euro-centrism by his 2019 Studies of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism?

Type
Closed Panel
Language
English
Description

Habermas has shown the outcomes of his studies of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism in his 2019 masterpiece, Noch eine Geschichter der Philosophie. The proposed panel is intended to investigate whether, and to what extent, this work has overcome the prolonged legacy of Euro-centrism deeply rooted in the history of European philosophy and social theory. For this, we distinguish three dimensions of Euro-centrism, that is, descriptive, pragmatic, and normative dimensions, and will pay close attention to the last one. In particular, we will critically examine Habermas' concluding assessment that equally significant far-reaching cognitive potentials for reflexive learning, as a key factor of human civilization, have been ingrained in both Greek ancient traditions and Asian traditions such as Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. For this purpose, this panel intends to provide an opportunity to concerned scholars to meet together to examine 1) the extent to which Habermas' researches are more reliable and qualified than Max Weber's, 2) whether Habermas has sufficiently overcome the legacy of Euro-centrism, and 3) what the practical implications of this finding for the future of East Asia are. The panel also hopes to facilitate a dialogue between East Asian and Western scholars, particularly the intellectuals of the Global South, who have argued that the Western modernity is nothing but an expression of colonialism. Seen from this perspective, Habermas can't be free from the charge of Euro-centrism because he has defended the Western modernity (even though he defined it as an incomplete project full of deficiencies) as well as universalism (even though he takes a post-metaphysical approach). Thus, the issue of Euro-centrism deserves careful attention and scrutiny, and this is particularly so in the case of Habermas who has attempted to go away from the trap of Euro-centrism by his 2-19 book, and by clearly identifying the danger of colonialism and imperialism in the colonization of life world by administrative power and market economy.

Onsite Presentation Language
Same as proposal language
Panel ID
PL-2133