Postmoderne Konflikte um den Konsensus-Begriff: Zum "Widerstreit" zwischen Lyotard und Habermas

Abstract: The starting point of the article is the controversy between French and German thought as presented by authors like, among others, Lyotard and Habermas. The ongoing debate about the status of (scientific) "knowledge", the crises of its foundations and the radical questioning of the concept of "reason" has led to the debate about "postmodernism". Substantial differences in the intentions, functions and meanings of French and German discourse are due to different theoretical approaches ,intellectual traditions and disciplinary developments. Misunderstandings and distorted perceptions of the opponent's reasoning are rooted in these different perspectives. One of the main targets of polemic criticism is the notion of "consensus" which plays an important role in Habermas' theorizing. Wishing to prepare ground for sober discussion the article deals with the various meanings and changing roles of the notion of "consensus" in Habermas' thought. The author argues that the idea of "consensus" functions in Habermas' work as an instrument to explain the meaning of the concept of "truth" (chapter 2), to elaborate a strong but specified notion of "communicative reason" (chapter 3) and to lay the foundations for a critical theory of society (chapter 4). By isolating the philosophical and sociological meanings and implications of the notion of "consensus" the article provides evidence that there is more common ground between the disputants in other areas than one might have expected.