The Origins of Jürgen Habermas' Linguistic Turn: The Foundation of Critical Social Theory and the Place of Humboldt's Linguistic Theory

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Authors

1 Sociology Department, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran.

2 sociology Department, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

10.30465/scs.2024.49697.2896

Abstract

Although the term "linguistic turn" has specific meanings in different approaches, it generally refers to the fact that in the 20th century, "language" became the center of attention of thinkers. Discussions about language caused these thinkers to take analytical and critical positions towards each other. Habermas, with the criticisms he made to two philosophical traditions, hermeneutic and analytical; He has established his pragmatist position on language.By following the works of Habermas, it becomes clear that the origin of his interest in language should be considered in "Humboldt's linguistic theory". Humboldt's theory presents a three-level division of language and provides Habermas with the possibility that he can first criticize other approaches to language-thought and reveal the inadequacy of their interpretation of language;Secondly, by highlighting the pragmatic level of language,he built a social theory that can understand and criticize the realized state of modernity. The origin of Habermas's "linguistic turn" is rooted in Humboldt's linguistic theory, a thinker who is on the fringes of the philosophical stream, but by highlighting his linguistic theory, Habermas shows that the interpretation and understanding of the two main thinkers of twentieth century linguistic thought,namely Heidegger and Wittgenstein about language can be analyzed in Humboldt's three-level division.

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