The Philosophical Explanation And The Meaning Of Public Opinion

The social opinion was definitely termed as the public opinion from etymology. The category attained the exact meaning since the 18^th century and is a critical activity of the rational public on the public affairs and public power in the public sphere. However, as a sort of social ideology, social opinion is directly against the public power according to Habermas' understanding. With the invading of the commercial market economy, the public function has had a structural change. It has become a cure profit and political instrument from the public critical function and corroded its publicity essence.However, the traditional China has not the called public sphere and public notion. We attached importance to the family benefit on the basis of clan and blood relationship, not the public benefit. It caused the indifference to the public affairs, the lack of the public spirit and the public morality. The modern society is not only a legal rights society, but also democratic, liberal and open society. The public opinion as a guarantee mechanism of the social contract has more and more substantive position and function. The promulgation of government's policy from above and the appeal of public's benefit from below generate with the support of the opinion authorities. The citizens can express their opinions and thoughts through the public opinion, form a powerful opinion force and have effective restriction and supervision on the public power of government. Therefore, the philosophical explanation of the public opinion has important meaning of theory and reality in the construction of harmonious Socialist society.The first part defines the social opinion firstly. The social opinion has the same connotation as 'the public opinion' which Habermas called. It is the public's liberal and rational critique on the public affairs and public power. Its key feature is publicity. Secondly, it discusses the revelation of the classical Marxism and Western Marxism on the real meaning of the public opinion. As a social consciousness, the social opinion is the reflection of the social existence. It lost original critical function gradually on the materialism and consumerism road and was a false and cheat reflectionThe second part explains the social opinion from the inner and outer environment, the mode of manifestation and the inherent value. From the inner and outer environment, the production of the social opinion suffers from the restriction of the social economy, politic and culture and so on, and the restraint of the heart rule, such as morality, custom and convention etc. The social opinion includes varieties of language opinion and action opinion. It reveals the rational and liberal spirit of the opinion's subject and the duality tension between the private power and the public power, and forms a good interaction mechanism between people and government.The third part clarifies the value publication of the social opinion in the civil society. The arising and development of the social opinion breeds a new temperament of the times and the cultural spirit. The ethic and morality constitutes its inner essence of spirit. Whether the personal ethic on the individualism principal and the rights ethics on the basis of the rights relation or the contract ethics on the center of the contract economy, these are a value ideal that we pursuit and embody the liberal and equal spirit of ration.The fourth part expounds the leading of social opinion on the crisis events and the remoulding of citizens' moral character. With respect to the emerging and influencing events of public crisis, the social opinion should undertake the leading and supervision function. It enables the public have recognition and enable the government take effective action. In respect of the citizen's moral sentiment, the social opinion bears the special mission. Because of the public credit, it has a valuable leading and makes the public from the pure economical person to the moral person of indignity.