Philosophy of Humanities Week 6
Week 6
Fraser
1. What is meant by normative legitimacy and political efficacy in the theory of public
sphere?
Transnational public sphere has purchase on social reality. Public sphere was invented to create normal
political theory of democracy, it is created for the public to have an opinion. It is legitimate because it
matters who participates and on what terms. Public sphere is there to find out political opinion from the
public. A public sphere should coexist with sovereign power. Therefore, legitimacy and political efficacy
is key in the theory of public sphere because without these two elements critical force is lost in the public
sphere. The alternative is a critical theoretical approach that seeks to locate normative standards and
emancipatory political possibilities.
2. What, according to Fraser was the essence of Habermas' concept of public sphere, and
what are its basic shortcomings today?
Westphalian political imaginary - bounded political community with its own territorial state, only
recently has this become problematized and that is due to post cold war instabilities and the increase of
globalization. And this is why Public sphere has become thought of as possibly transnational. Its
shortcomings are presented “It would rather be to reformulate the critical theory of the public sphere in a
way that can illuminate the emancipatory possibilities of the present constellation.”
3. What is meant by 'transnational', and in what respect is this different from, say,
'international', or 'supranational'?
Transnational means is extending and operating beyond national boundaries becomes multicultural,
containing multi languages for example businesses like ford . International is different from transnational
as the interests lie within ones nation for example promoting their language or country or investment that
is solely within ones own nation whereas transnational extends across boundaries of ones own countries
company vy extending and making impact on other nations. Supranational is a controlling force that has
dominance and leadership over anothers country or politically speaking the EU has policies and
institutions that are supranational that all member states must adopt and abide to.
4. What solutions does Fraser suggest to be able to apply the concept of public sphere on a
transnational level? Could you think of two examples?
He refers to Habermans role that he valorized the role of social emancipatory movements and second
wave feminism, this could be one way it is applied on a transnational level, by the concept of public
sphere promoting different forms of equality and given to the people the possibility of democratic
freedom and protest for rights; a political voice. Fraser states that topics of “transnational public
spheres”, “diasporic public spheres”, and the “global public sphere”. With the divide being in two in
modern day talks, with one public view that transnationality is a new development which has become
associated with globalization and the other view being that this transnationality has been since the 17th
century. With citing the Enlightenment visions of the international “republic of letters” and cross national
movements such as abolitionism and socialism. But the two to be applied in helping in modern day
Week 6
Fraser
1. What is meant by normative legitimacy and political efficacy in the theory of public
sphere?
Transnational public sphere has purchase on social reality. Public sphere was invented to create normal
political theory of democracy, it is created for the public to have an opinion. It is legitimate because it
matters who participates and on what terms. Public sphere is there to find out political opinion from the
public. A public sphere should coexist with sovereign power. Therefore, legitimacy and political efficacy
is key in the theory of public sphere because without these two elements critical force is lost in the public
sphere. The alternative is a critical theoretical approach that seeks to locate normative standards and
emancipatory political possibilities.
2. What, according to Fraser was the essence of Habermas' concept of public sphere, and
what are its basic shortcomings today?
Westphalian political imaginary - bounded political community with its own territorial state, only
recently has this become problematized and that is due to post cold war instabilities and the increase of
globalization. And this is why Public sphere has become thought of as possibly transnational. Its
shortcomings are presented “It would rather be to reformulate the critical theory of the public sphere in a
way that can illuminate the emancipatory possibilities of the present constellation.”
3. What is meant by 'transnational', and in what respect is this different from, say,
'international', or 'supranational'?
Transnational means is extending and operating beyond national boundaries becomes multicultural,
containing multi languages for example businesses like ford . International is different from transnational
as the interests lie within ones nation for example promoting their language or country or investment that
is solely within ones own nation whereas transnational extends across boundaries of ones own countries
company vy extending and making impact on other nations. Supranational is a controlling force that has
dominance and leadership over anothers country or politically speaking the EU has policies and
institutions that are supranational that all member states must adopt and abide to.
4. What solutions does Fraser suggest to be able to apply the concept of public sphere on a
transnational level? Could you think of two examples?
He refers to Habermans role that he valorized the role of social emancipatory movements and second
wave feminism, this could be one way it is applied on a transnational level, by the concept of public
sphere promoting different forms of equality and given to the people the possibility of democratic
freedom and protest for rights; a political voice. Fraser states that topics of “transnational public
spheres”, “diasporic public spheres”, and the “global public sphere”. With the divide being in two in
modern day talks, with one public view that transnationality is a new development which has become
associated with globalization and the other view being that this transnationality has been since the 17th
century. With citing the Enlightenment visions of the international “republic of letters” and cross national
movements such as abolitionism and socialism. But the two to be applied in helping in modern day
