Civil Society and Lebanon: Toward Hermeneutic Theory of the Public Sphere in Comparative Studies

This study pursues a hermeneutic and dialogic conception of the public sphere. Through a critical assessment of the development of the closely related ideas of civil society and a democratic public sphere.

Specifically, this study explores Ibn Khaldoun's notion of Asabiya and its impact on the constitution of civil society and the public sphere in Lebanon, paying particular attention to the notions of power and authority within the context of this indigenous concept in particular, and Lebanese (and Arab) culture in general.