Jürgen Habermas 
The Postnational Constellation 
Political Essays

Does a global economy render the traditional nation-state obsolete?
Does globalization threaten democratic life, or offer it new forms
of expression? What are the implications of globalization for our
understanding of politics and of national and cultural identities?

In The Postnational Constellation, the leading German
philosopher and social theorist J?rgen Habermas addresses these and
other questions. He explores topics such as the historical and
political origins of national identity, the catastrophes and
achievements of ‘the long twentieth century, ‘ the future of
democracy in the wake of the era of the nation-state, the moral and
political challenges facing the European Union, and the status of
global human rights in the ongoing debate on the sources of
cultural identity. In their scope, critical insight, and
argumentative clarity, the essays in The Postnational
Constellation present a powerful vision of the contemporary
political scene and of the challenges and opportunities we face in
the new millennium.

Those unfamiliar with Habermas’s theoretical work will find in this
volume a lucid and engaging introduction to one of the world’s most
influential thinkers. For readers familiar with Habermas’s
writings, The Postnational Constellation provides an
invaluable application of his social and political theories to
current political realities.

Table of Content

Editor’s Introduction.

Foreword.

What is a People? The Frankfurt ‘Germanists’ Assembly’ of 1846
and the Self-Understanding of the Humanities in the
Vorm?rz.

On the Public Use of History.

Learning from Catastrophe? A Look Back at the Short Twentieth
Century.

The Postnational Constellation and the Future of Democracy.

Remarks on Legitimation through Human Rights.

Conceptions of Modernity: A Look Back at Two Traditions.

The Differing Rhythms of Philosophy and Politics: Herbert
Marcuse at 100.

An Argument against Cloning: Three Replies.

Notes.

Index

About the author

J?rgen Habermas is Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at the
Johann Wolfgang Goethe University of Frankfurt.

The Postnational Constellation is edited, translated and
introduced by Max Pensky