Communication, Culture and Lifeworld: The contributions of Jürgen Habermas and Alfred Schutz

Abstract

This paper portrays the concept of lifeworld in the light of its contribution to a theory of culture and communication. Initially developed by the philosopher Edmund Husserl, the concept was refined by the austro-american philosopher and sociologist Alfred Schutz. Later on, the concept was employed by well-established theories like the social constructivism of Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, as well as Jürgen Habermas’ theory of communicative action as a basis of rationality, which highlights the importance of this undertaking. The concept of the lifeworld is, along these lines, conceived as an interface between a theory of communication and culture.