Civil Society Argument, “the Critical Theory of Soviet-type Societies,” and East Asia: From a Rereading of Arato’s <i>From Neo-Marxism to Democratic Theory</i>

A deep understanding of the possibilities and conditions required to construct the East Asian civil society argument (EACSA) through the examination of the relationship between the civil society argument and “the critical theory of soviet-type societies” (CTSS) in Andrew Arato’s From Neo-Marxism to Democratic Theory (DT) is provided in this paper. It is clarified how DT successfully mediates social change themes between Eastern and Western Europe under different regimes, regarding “relatively autonomous civil society from the state” as a common solution. However, theoretical problems remain unsolved between CTSS and the civil society argument. Mediating social change themes between heterogeneous societies through the “civil society” concept implies possibilities in EACSA construction. The unsolved problems in DT will become more pressing questions that EACSA must ask itself.