The out?dated intentionalistic assumptions manifest in Habermas's Theory of Communicative Action undermine a solution to the problem of order in action theory beyond utilitarianism. An analysis of his intersubjectivistic conception, which is based on the theory of the speech?act, shows that the incompleteness of Habermas's linguistic turn is due to his attempt to revive the older Critical Theory's concept of critique. The claims for a scientifically well?founded revival of a universal concept of reason ? which are asserted in this concept (...) ? invalidate the intersubjectivistic paradigm in action theory and therefore obstruct the way to a de?individualized formulation of the theory of social contract that avoids the paradox of utilitarian models. (shrink)

On the Habermasial Argument of Parasitism. In this article it is argued that throughout Habermas' various treatments of the problem of 'simple imperatives' one can find a remaining contradiction: namely between identifying them on the one hand, for logical reasons, as the 'unsocial' acts they are . On the other hand, for fitting into sociological descriptions, Habermas tries to rearrange threats etc. within a so-called 'continuum' of all social actions. These difficulties can only be avoided by recognizing the entirely unsocial (...) character of certain ways of acting. This premiss is applied in an alternative analysis of perlocutions and simple imperatives. It leads to the conclusion that for the sake of logical consistency the possibility of ethical ignorance - the Kantian 'evil'? - must be brought into the categorical account of a grammatical analysis of practical statements. (shrink)