China and the West

Tong, Shijun. Habermas and the Chinese discourse of modernity [ID D24556].
Habermas's conception of the relation between science and democracy is especially relevant to the Chinese dicourse of modernity. Both science and democracy are forms of discourse or communication in special fields. Science is a form of theoretical discours, while democracy is a form of practical discourse.
An enlightened public shpere is a key element in Habermas's conception of socialism, or his version of 'socialist modernity'. In contemporary China, a socialist mode of modernity is not only the goal of the official program of modernization, but also a widely shared ideal among ordinary people and intellectuals who do not necessarily all agree with the official program.
The situation in China is quite different from that in West Europe and North America, with reference to which Habermas elaborated his conception of political culture. Two points can be made with equal, if not stronger, validity. On the one hand, a political culture in this sense is not necessarily something culture-specific or culture-eccentric ; there is no 'a priori' reason to say that no political culture can be developed on the basis of non-Western cultures. On the other hand, in order to cultivate a political culture, a self-conscious and self-reflective effort, especially among intellectuals, is of crucial importance. These are perhaps the most pertinent aspecst in Habermas's critical theory as seen from a Chinese perspective.