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This book makes a unique attempt to approach Hannah Arendt’s thoughts from a sociological perspective. It builds on Arendt’s understanding of totalitarianism, which identifies extermination camps—symbols of the Holocaust—as the ultimate manifestation of totalitarianism. The book also takes up Arendt’s pivotal question of how we can judge an unprecedented form of “evil.” Arendt’s perspective, which involves passing judgments on the most horrific historical event without relying on established principles, reflects a depth and breadth that transcends a particular ideology. Thus, it aligns closely with the concept of value freedom (Wertfreiheit) in sociological thought.
 
However, the purpose of this book is not to reinterpret Arendt’s thought within the traditional framework of sociological knowledge or to assimilate it into the field of sociology. Instead, it aims to uncover the essence of Arendt’s ideas in their own right. To this end, existing sociological discussions are employed as reference points. Beginning with her notion of “the banality of evil,” Arendt rejected Kant’s categorical imperative. While she found a model for political judgment in Kant’s aesthetic judgment, she ultimately diverged from Kant and developed her own theory of judgment. By retracing her intellectual journey, this book highlights how sociological theories, such as Zygmunt Bauman’s interpretation of the Holocaust as the apex of modern rationalism, Georg Simmel’s critique of Kant’s practical reason from a sociological perspective, Niklas Luhmann’s depiction of communication as a self-referential system, and Jürgen Habermas’s ideal of truth through consensus, serve as critical guidelines.
 
This book argues that Arendt’s concept of “judgment” is more than just the act of founding the public sphere through discourse. It is also a form of autopoietic system that self-referentially reproduces the plurality of “factual truth.” Through this recursive process, Arendt’s concept of “judgment,” which does not seek a single form of justice, can be understood more precisely.
 
The significance of this work lies in the novel contributions that sociological theory brings to the study of Arendt as well as in exploring new intersections between Arendt’s thought and sociological knowledge that have remained largely unexamined. If the issues raised in this book help affirm and share the reality of human plurality and deepen our understanding of its fundamental value, there can be no greater reward.
 

(Written by HASHIMOTO Setsuko, Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences / 2025)