| This dissertation proposes an original interpretation of the critical social theory of Theodor W. Adorno (1903-1969). The key to this interpretation is a contrast between Adorno and two other philosophers, Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) and Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900). The purpose of the central part of the dissertation, then, is to demonstrate that the influence of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche on Adorno has been in several cases misunderstood.;Schopenhauer interpreted the "Will" as the basis for all human behavior and, ultimately, as the element which has shaped and constructed the structure of human rationality. The will is seen by this author as a natural force which conditions, both consciously and unconsciously, human action in all its aspects, and this force compels human beings to dominate other living beings. The substitution of will for reason in his thought can be considered a radical innovation in the history of philosophy. Since Plato, philosophers have traditionally regarded rationality as a spiritual (even quasi-divine) faculty that operates independently of, and exercises dominion over, embodied acts of volition. For Schopenhauer, by contrast, it is not disembodied reason that controls the will, but just the reverse. And this will represents a destructive force of the root of all exploitation, natural as well as human.;The difference between Nietzsche and Adorno on one side, and Schopenhauer on the other, is subtle but momentous. For Schopenhauer the "Will" is a metaphysical force that exists eternally and immutably in all living matter. This means that for him the desire to dominate is an irrepressible element in all biological striving. Subsequently, Schopenhauer is pessimistic about prospects for human progress. By contrast, for Nietzsche and Adorno respectively the "Will" and the "Domination of Nature" are historical phenomena. More precisely, these concepts designate an evolved method of adaptation by which all of nature is subject to calculated control---a potential that the emergence of capitalism has both developed and distorted. Be that as it may, the destructive form of calculating reason and will is not considered immutable by Nietzsche and Adorno. Their critique of rationality and will rather aims at articulating a new concept of rationality and will oriented towards reconciling nature and self-preservation. The liberation of humans from the mechanisms of domination still remains an extremely complicated task for them, but not an impossible one.;After having contrasted the social perspective of Adorno's theory of domination with that of his predecessors, my dissertation focuses first on aesthetics as a model for an emancipating rationality, and then to its applicability to current social and political change. This constitutes an original contribution to Adorno's scholarship, since Adorno's theory has been often criticized for being too abstract for guiding social action of any kind. |
