Unresolved Moments (Western Thought in the Field of Modernity)

Author: Liu Qing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-10-01
Features: This book explores various topics within the domain of modernity by examining the research and writings of Western thinkers and scholars such as Habermas, Arendt, Schmitt, Berlin, Popper, Kolakowski, Skinner, and Pokok. It discusses themes such as the legitimacy of knowledge and politics, liberalism, pluralism, nationalism, republicanism, and the Enlightenment tradition and utopian thought. The author argues that the idea of viewing modernity as a homogeneous whole is an illusion. Modernity is internally characterized by complex diversity and tension. The book examines the research and writings of Western thinkers and scholars such as Habermas, Arendt, Schmitt, Berlin, Popper, Kolakowski, Skinner, and Pokok, exploring various topics within the domain of modernity: the legitimacy of knowledge and politics, liberalism, pluralism, nationalism, republicanism, and the Enlightenment tradition and utopian thought. The author contends that the notion of modernity as a uniform entity is a delusion. Modernity harbors intricate diversity and tension within it. Modern Enlightenment tends to exhibit a tendency toward "rational arrogance," while also encompassing self-doubt and a critical stance. The diagnosis of the modernity crisis does not necessarily compel us to choose between "arrogant scientific hubris" and "anti-rational nihilism." This extreme binary concept itself is a typical symptom of modern thought. Modernity remains a "living" and evolving reality, and its future prospects hold multiple possibilities. It is precisely the uncertainty of the modern world that invites us to embrace a cautious rationalism—a critical thinking that transcends binary oppositions, a practical philosophy highly attuned to historical and contemporary circumstances—thereby exploring potential pathways to address the challenges of modernity.