Feminists Read Habermas

Book excerpt: This important new collection considers Jurgen Habermas's discourse theory from a variety of feminist vantage points. Habermas's theory represents one of the most persuasive current formulations of moral and political notions of subjectivity and normativity. Feminist scholars have been drawn to his work because it reflects a tradition of emancipatory political thinking rooted in the Enlightenment and engages with the normative aims of emancipatory social movements. The essays in Feminists Read Habermas analyze various aspects of Habermas's theory, ranging from his moral theory to political issues of identity and participation. While the contributors hold widely different political and philosophical views, they share a conviction of the potential significance of Habermas's work for feminist reflections on power, norms and subjectivity.