The Interaction Between an Individual and Society Research Paper

The Interaction Between an Individual and Society - Research Paper Example Human rationality implies, for enlightened thinkers, an attempt to know and understand the natural world, and the use of rational principles to solve social interaction problems. These attempts should culminate in the realization of enlightened faith and idealism in a utopian society. Nietzsche opposed this progress as being naà ¯ve but was unable to elude it. A second theme is those involving contradictions existing between commonality and individuality. Human consciousness was passive while accepting ideology, doctrine, orthodoxy and mass thinking, and it saw reality in the liturgy of vested interests. Ideology arises when a group advances certain socially constructed realities which serve their interests, but which are projected as being in everyone else’s best interests, even though others disagree or don’t understand it. Critical theory views rationality in terms of theoretical consistency and in the standards of pragmatic social reality. Rational planning for rea listic action involves regulative ideals, which have been formulated as enlightened possibilities for the acquisition of knowledge and proper conduct. Enlightenment’s theoretical reverence for reason proceeded in two opposing wrong directions. One became the instrumental reason for technological rationality and the other culminated in logical positivism which, understood knowledge only in logico-mathematical terms, denying any truth or practical relevance to values (Regelski, 2005). Historically, mobility, economy, technology and infrastructure rapidly transformed the metropolis, in disruptive and sometimes destructive ways.