Subjectivity

Abstract

As arguing always bears a subjective imprint, a theory of subjectivity has to be part of an adequate theory of argument. Orientation is related to a subject (a person or collective), which can be modeled as a self-referential system with autonomous control of its activities. These activities are structured by the subject’s “habitus” whose cognitive level is a belief system (orientation system). Within the system, several levels can be distinguished. The lowest level is emotional orientation and the highest level is (existential) meaning. The subject possesses the capacity of self-distanciation, which is required for overcoming the limits of subjective partiality.