Abstract

In a first step, I disentangle the issues of scientism and of compatiblism versus incompatibilism. I then analyse Habermas' refutation of compatibilism and argue that his refutation of the compatibilism defended by Harry Frankfurt is not successful, since Habermas has shown neither that compatibilists have to defend scientism nor that compatibilism is committed to the claim that agents themselves must hold a compatibilist interpretation of their actions. In a third step, I discuss Habermas' broad conception of nature and ask whether nature in this broad sense can be dealt with entirely within the observer perspective or not. I show that, in this respect, Habermas' overall position is in need of further clarifications, which may also influence his treatment of compatibilism