The Dialectic of Herbert Marcuse

Herbert Marcuse (1898-1979) was one of the most recognizable and controversial public intellectuals throughout the 1960s until his death in the late 1970s, but today Marcuses work largely stands in the shadows of other Frankfurt School members and other critical thinkers. Despite having once held a prominent and influential position amongst scholars, activists, and readers in the twentieth-century, it is argued that Marcuses work nevertheless remains largely misunderstood. The Dialectic of Herbert Marcuse offers a new interpretation of Marcuse, one that attempts to show how Marcuses work has so often been turned into something else, into its opposite. In shining a light on parts of the unknown Marcuse through the use of archival material and published works, this book reveals Marcuses Critical Theory to be one of hope, not one of pessimism as it is so often portrayed to be. Ultimately, it is argued that Herbert Marcuses Critical Theory remains a vital and important body of work for present-day society and ought to be re-visited.