Struggle for Recognition

Axel Honneth is a distinguished German philosopher and social theorist, and a leading figure of the third generation of the Frankfurt School in the contemporary international academic sphere. He has always maintained a critical position, particularly in his critique of modern social philosophy. Since the time of Machiavelli and Hobbes, modern social philosophy has assumed a hostile relationship between individuals, each desiring to secure their own conditions for existence.Beginning with Hegel, Honneth reinterprets human conflict from the viewpoint of 'the struggle for recognition': he highlights the moral dimension inherent in any confrontation and reconstructs social evolution on the foundation of actual or symbolic struggles, where individuals are more concerned with having their individuality acknowledged by their opponents than with overpowering them (recognition manifesting in three forms: love, law, and solidarity).In this work, corresponding to the three forms of recognition, Honneth identifies three forms of disrespect: physical violation, legal violation, and infringement upon personal dignity, offering us an invaluable critical instrument. Honneth's theory of recognition has profound theoretical significance for the building of communities.