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A Study Of Marcuse 's Utopian Thought

Posted on:2014-02-27Degree:DoctorType:Dissertation
Country:ChinaCandidate:Y H LiFull Text:PDF
GTID:1105330434971182Subject:Marxist philosophy
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Herbert Marcuse was known as ’the last one romanticist’ in the20th century. In the face of the Marxism’s crisis in the beginning of the last century, argued that if Marxism still persisted to its human liberation commitment, it must be developed into ’new Marxism’ which adapted to the20th century’s social historical conditions, Then he advocated all the taboos which against utopian thoughts should be breaked,and the utopia ideas should be introduce into the human’s liberation enterprise once again. Such position clearly expressed in his modern declaration of utopian socialism, which said ’the path for socialism may proceed from science to utopia and not from utopia to science’. Therefore, he emphasized the significance of utopia’s liberation on the base of demarcating the utopia’s connotative meaning from the1930s onwards, in order to stitch-up the crevices of the socialism and utopianism.This attitude was opposite to Marx and Engels.Tracing back the source of Marcuse’s utopian ideas, it was gestated by his early ideological experiences. By examining the writings in his preparatory period of utopian thoughts, we found that his interpretation of Marxism was a humanistic way, Frankfurt School critical theory was a future-oriented theory, the negativity in Hegel’s thought was excavated, and all of above eased the way for his acceptance and development of the utopian socialist thought.Marcuse’s imagination of the future of the utopian socialism’s path, began in his dissatisfaction with the social reality of modern civilization. After the research of Soviet Socialism and the US-led developed capitalist society, he concluded that modern civilization was not a free society which must realize human’s essence in his view. This conclusion comprehensively launched his utopian thought.Firstly,after a synthesis of Marxism and Freudism in the mid-1950s, Marcuse sketched the outlines of a’erotic utopia’ or a ’non-repressive society’ which would involve non-alienated labor, full leisure, satisfied erotic need and production of a society which would further freedom and happiness. Moreover, according to the essence of the ’erotic utopia’, it was a psychology utopianism which distinguished from the traditional utopia.1960s, with the arrival of the wave of radical change in the world, Marcuse began renewed reflection on revolution and liberation. Although he didn’t deny the benefits of progressive social reform, he argued that the problems in the existing society could not be solved by piecemeal reform. On the contrary, it was not possible to realize the non-repressive society only if the existing regime was thoroughly changed. As a result, his utopian political" theory has become more and more radical and’revolutionary’. By firstly questioning of the validity of Marxism, he put forward the theory of modern utopian revolution which adapted to the changing times. After being Proved the bankruptcy of his theory by the practice of ’the May Storm’, Marcuse eventually returned be a gentle romanticist from a radical critic:instinct was replaced with new sensibility, as well as the instinct revolution was replaced with aesthetic revolution.Marcuse thought that the bourgeois’’high culture’, especially the art contained powerful indictments of bourgeois society and emancipatory visions of a better society. Thus he attempted to defend the importance of great art for the projection of emancipation and argued that cultural revolution was an indispensable part of revolutionary politics.Throughout his life, Marcuse always attempted to combine Utopianism and Marxism, in order to develop a form of critical, humanistic and dialectical Marxism which would appropriate to the demands of the era, and he regarded it as a new weapon to criticize contemporary capitalism. It was a precious spiritual heritage left by him, though in a obvious’Romantic’critical way.
Keywords/Search Tags:Herbert Marcuse, Utopianism, Eros, Cultural Revolution
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