The Philosophy Of Praxis Marx, Lukács And The Frankfurt School

The early Marx called for the "realization of philosophy" through revolution. Revolution thus becomes a critical philosophical concept for Marxism, a view elaborated in the later praxis philosophies of Lukács, and the Frankfurt School. These philosophers argue that fundamental philosophical problems are, in reality, social problems abstractly conceived. This argument has two implications: on the one hand, philosophical problems are significant insofar as they reflect real social contradictions; on the other hand, philosophy cannot resolve the problems it identifies because only social revolution can eliminate their causes.

Realizing Philosophy traces the evolution of this argument in the writings of Marx, Lukács, Adorno and Marcuse. This reinterpretation of the philosophy of praxis shows its continuing relevance to contemporary discussions in Marxist political theory, continental philosophy and science and technology studies.

Andrew Feenberg is the author of Lukács, Marx and the Sources of Critical Theory (1986), Critical Theory of Technology (1991), Alternative Modernity (1995), Questioning Technology (1999), Transforming Technology (2002), Heidegger and Marcuse: The Catastrophe and Redemption of History (2005), and Between Reason and Experience: Essays in Technology and Modernity (2010). He is also co-editor of Marcuse: Critical Theory and the Promise of Utopia (1987), Technology and the Politics of Knowledge (1995), Modernity and Technology (2003), Community in the Digital Age (2004), and (Re)inventing the Internet (2012). With William Leiss, Feenberg has edited a collection entitled The Essential Marcuse published in 2007. His co-authored book on the French May Events of 1968 appeared in 2001 under the title When Poetry Ruled the Streets