The Dialectical Sociology of Michel Freitag and the Critique of Communication Society

IF 1.7 3区社会学 Q2 SOCIOLOGY

Critical Sociology Pub Date : 2023-10-11 DOI:10.1177/08969205231201253

Claude Leduc, Maxime Ouellet, André Mondoux

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Abstract

Michel Freitag developed a ground-breaking sociological theory synthesizing the thought of sociology’s founders into the form of a dialectical sociology that conceives of the symbolic as ontological to social reality. After outlining his conceptualization of the historical evolution of society through its ‘modes of reproduction’, we will see how his analysis of contemporary societal transformations rests on a critical theory of communication and technology that, while entering a dialogue with the works of the Frankfurt school, especially those of Habermas, seeks to overcome their inherent contradictions. According to Freitag, the development of capitalist globalization alters the very substance of society as it tends to morph itself into a self-regulating cybernetic system. His sociology allows us to apprehend phenomena tied to the development of contemporary digital technologies such as the drive towards a new form of algorithmic governmentality fueled by digital oligopolies that increasingly dominate globalized capitalism, the rise of fake news in the era of post-truth and the transformation of subjectivity. Finally, his critique enables potent reflection on the dialectical possibilities of overcoming the dynamics of contemporary alienation.

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弗莱塔格的辩证社会学与《传播社会批判》

米歇尔·弗莱塔格发展了一种开创性的社会学理论，将社会学创始人的思想综合为辩证社会学的形式，认为象征是社会现实的本体论。在概述了他通过其“再生产模式”对社会历史演变的概念化之后，我们将看到他对当代社会转型的分析是如何建立在沟通和技术的批判理论之上的，当与法兰克福学派的作品，特别是哈贝马斯的作品进行对话时，他试图克服它们内在的矛盾。根据Freitag的说法，资本主义全球化的发展改变了社会的本质，因为它倾向于将自己变成一个自我调节的控制论系统。他的社会学让我们能够理解与当代数字技术发展相关的现象，比如由日益主导全球化资本主义的数字寡头推动的新形式的算法治理，后真相时代假新闻的兴起以及主体性的转变。最后，他的批判有力地反映了克服当代异化动态的辩证可能性。

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来源期刊

Critical Sociology SOCIOLOGY-

CiteScore

3.70

自引率

5.30%

发文量

期刊介绍： Critical Sociology is an international peer reviewed journal that publishes the highest quality original research. Originally appearing as The Insurgent Sociologist, it grew out of the tumultuous times of the late 1960s and was a by-product of the "Sociology Liberation Movement" which erupted at the 1969 meetings of the American Sociological Association. At first publishing work mainly within the broadest boundaries of the Marxist tradition, over the past decade the journal has been home to articles informed by post-modern, feminist, cultural and other perspectives that critically evaluate the workings of the capitalist system and its impact on the world.