Order Without Rules: Critical Theory and the Logic of Conversation

by Bogen, David

• ISBN13: 9780791440568
• ISBN10: 0791440567
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-09-01
• Publisher: State Univ of New York Pr

Summary

Since Max Weber social theory has been faced with a paradox -- the "problem of rationality" -- that seems to challenge the very foundations of critical and humanist visions of modern society. According to Weber, as industrial societies develop they increasingly are dominated by rational procedures for the production of goods, the organization of human resources, and the management of information. The paradox consists in the fact that while modern society is, in this instrumental sense, becoming more rationalized, the prospects for developing political and cultural institutions which are linked to a progressive vision of rational discourse and democratic-will formation are diminished.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	vii
Transcription Conventions	ix
Introduction	1	(14)
The ``Binding Force'' of Everyday Speech	15	(24)
Formal Pragmatics and the Logic of Conversation	39	(20)
The Doctrine of Literal Expression and the Theory of Speech Acts	59	(24)
The Organization of Talk	83	(38)
Order Without Rules	121	(20)
Conclusion	141	(6)
Notes	147	(36)
Author Index	183	(2)
Subject Index	185