Von der Theoriegeschichte zur transformativen Praxis?

This review essays compares four recent books on critical theory, all of which aim to show the relevance of this approach – three of them from a historical perspective, looking at Friedrich Pollock, the American journals Telos and New German Critique, and the history of the Frankfurt School in particular; a fourth one develops a new approach that combines the critique of political economy with feminism, postcolonialism and ecology. The author stresses two threads that run through all four books: first, the impact of American scholarship on the critical project, and second, the importance of a sound understanding of Marxism in order to overcome theoretical inertia and to become more transformative with regard to political practice.

Stuart Jeffries, Grand Hotel Abgrund. Die Frankfurter Schule und ihre Zeit. Stuttgart: Klett-Cotta, 2019 509 S.; Philipp Lenhard, Friedrich Pollock: Die graue Eminenz der Frankfurter Schule, Berlin: Suhrkamp, 2019. 393 S.; Robert Zwarg, Die Kritische Theorie in Amerika: Das Nachleben einer Tradition, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2017. 464 S.; Nancy Fraser/Rahel Jaeggi, Kapitalismus. Ein Gespräch über kritische Theorie, Berlin: Suhrkamp, 2020. 329 S.