
Critical Theory: A Very Short Introduction
A Very Short Introduction
Stephen Eric Bronner(Author)
Oxford University Press
1st Edition
Published on 5. May 2011
Book
Paperback/Softback
144 pages
978-0-19-973007-0 (ISBN)
Description
In its essence, Critical Theory is Western Marxist thought with the emphasis moved from the liberation of the working class to broader issues of individual agency. Critical Theory emerged in the 1920s from the work of the Frankfurt School, the circle of German-Jewish academics who sought to diagnose-and, if at all possible, cure-the ills of society, particularly fascism and capitalism. In this book, Stephen Eric Bronner provides sketches of famous and less famous
representatives of the critical tradition (such as George Lukacs and Ernst Bloch, Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin, Herbert Marcuse and Jurgen Habermas) as well as many of its seminal texts and empirical investigations.
Though they shared a Marxist bent, the Frankfurt School's scholars came from a variety of fields-philosophy, economics, psychoanalysis, and even music-and they initially sought not only to do interdisciplinary work but also to combine theory with practice, criticism with empirical data. Forced by the rise of Hitler to flee to the United States, by the late 1930s the Frankfurt School left behind the emphasis on empiricism, beginning instead to specialize in philosophical inquiry into the
nature of social control, which combined the work of Hegel, Marx, Freud, and Nietzsche.
This VSI is ultimately organized around the cluster of concepts and themes that set critical theory apart from its more traditional philosophical competitors. Bronner explains and discusses concepts such as method and agency, alienation and reification, the culture industry and repressive tolerance, non-identity and utopia. He argues for the introduction of new categories and perspectives for illuminating the obstacles to progressive change and focusing upon hidden transformative possibilities.
Only a critique of critical theory can render it salient for a new age. That is precisely what this very short introduction seeks to provide.
ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
representatives of the critical tradition (such as George Lukacs and Ernst Bloch, Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin, Herbert Marcuse and Jurgen Habermas) as well as many of its seminal texts and empirical investigations.
Though they shared a Marxist bent, the Frankfurt School's scholars came from a variety of fields-philosophy, economics, psychoanalysis, and even music-and they initially sought not only to do interdisciplinary work but also to combine theory with practice, criticism with empirical data. Forced by the rise of Hitler to flee to the United States, by the late 1930s the Frankfurt School left behind the emphasis on empiricism, beginning instead to specialize in philosophical inquiry into the
nature of social control, which combined the work of Hegel, Marx, Freud, and Nietzsche.
This VSI is ultimately organized around the cluster of concepts and themes that set critical theory apart from its more traditional philosophical competitors. Bronner explains and discusses concepts such as method and agency, alienation and reification, the culture industry and repressive tolerance, non-identity and utopia. He argues for the introduction of new categories and perspectives for illuminating the obstacles to progressive change and focusing upon hidden transformative possibilities.
Only a critique of critical theory can render it salient for a new age. That is precisely what this very short introduction seeks to provide.
ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Reviews / Votes
"This is the only book of its kind: it's a readable, yet expertly crafted, tour through the Frankfurt School, along with a forceful account of why the Frankfurt School of Critical Theory still matters a decade into the new millennium. I can't recommend it highly enough." --Jeffrey T. Nealon, professor of English, Penn State University; co-editor of Rethinking the Frankfurt School"The book's forthright critique and call to transformation are a breath of
fresh air."-- Joan Braune, Philosophy in Review
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
General readers and students of philosophy, cultural studies, literature and literary theory, political science, and sociology
Illustrations
9 black and white halftones
Dimensions
Height: 174 mm
Width: 114 mm
Thickness: 11 mm
Weight
128 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-973007-0 (9780199730070)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Stephen Eric Bronner
Critical Theory A Very Short Introduction
E-Book
05/2011
1st Edition
Oxford University Press
€15.29
Available for download

E-Book
02/2011
1st Edition
Oxford University Press, USA
€40.09
Available for download
Person
Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Director for Global Relations, Centre for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights, Rutgers University; author, Reclaiming the Enlightenment: Toward a Politics of Radical Engagement (Columbia, 2004); Of Critical Theory and Its Theorists (Routledge 1994, pb 2002); co-editor, Critical Theory and Society: A Reader (Routledge, 1989).
Author
Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Director for Global Relations, Centre for the Study of Genocide and Human RightsRutgers University
Content
List of Illustrations
Introduction: What is Critical Theory?
Chapter 1: The Frankfurt School
Chapter 2: A Matter of Method
Chapter 3: Alienation and Reification
Chapter 4: Enlightened Illusions
Chapter 5: Utopia and its Discontents
Chapter 6: The Happy Consciousness
Chapter 7: The Great Refusal
Chapter 8: From Resignation to Renewal
Further Reading
Index
Introduction: What is Critical Theory?
Chapter 1: The Frankfurt School
Chapter 2: A Matter of Method
Chapter 3: Alienation and Reification
Chapter 4: Enlightened Illusions
Chapter 5: Utopia and its Discontents
Chapter 6: The Happy Consciousness
Chapter 7: The Great Refusal
Chapter 8: From Resignation to Renewal
Further Reading
Index