Adorno's Negative Dialectic

Brian O'Connor

"The purely philosophical concerns of Theodor W. Adorno's negative dialectic would seem to be far removed from the concreteness of critical theory, Adorno's philosophy considers perhaps the most traditional subject of "pure" philosophy, the structure of experience whereas critical theory examines specific aspects of society. But, as Brain O'Connor demonstrates in this original interpretation of Adorno's philosophy, the negative dialectic can be seen as the theoretical foundation of the reflexivity or critical rationality required by critical theory. Adorno, O'Connor argues, is committed to the "concretion" of philosophy, his thesis of nonidentity attempts to show that reality is not reducible to appearances. This lays the foundation for the applied "concrete" critique of appearances that is essential to the possibility of critical theory." "To explicate the context in which Adorno's...

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