This research examines the contrasting philosophical theories of Noam Chomsky and Jurgen Habermas on language and its role in human understanding. Chomsky’s theory of universal grammar highlights the biological foundations of language as an innate cognitive faculty, while Habermas’s theory of communicative action situates language within its social function as a medium for intersubjective understanding. By exploring the philosophical and sociopolitical implications of these two frameworks, this research highlights the tension between internal linguistic representation and socially mediated communication. This aims to reveal how both perspectives, though different, can complement each other in deepening our understanding of language as both a cognitive structure and a social phenomenon, and as a socio-political critique, exposing how the use and misuse of language can directly shape our democracy. Both Chomsky and Habermas reveal that the distortion of language through ideology and manipulation not only undermines truth and moral responsibility, but also threatens that very integrity of public discourse and democracy.

Authors:
Vincent Ray Daut, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines

About the Presenter(s)
Vincent Ray M. Daut, a graduate student at Ateneo de Manila University, has a deep interest in Philosophy and Theology.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Monday Schedule

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