Adorno's Pessimism

[T P Uschanov]

On Fri, 10 May 1996, Philip Hancock wrote:

> What I find re-invigorating about Adorno's pessimism, is that it 
> acknowledges itself, while simultaineously maintainig the possibility and 
> indeed vitality of critique. This is, it seems to me, increasingly important 
> in the face of a postmodern onslaught whose only respone to the 'Dialectic 
> of Enlightenment' as articulated by Adorno, is to deny the effaciousness of 
> critique, surrendering instead to the headonism of a 'culture industry' 
> which demands not only upon obedience, but celebration.

Whenever I feel a need for self-acknowledging pessimism that maintains 
the possibility and vitality of critique, I find myself much preferring 
the Situationist International to Adorno.

T P Uschanov, University of Helsinki, Finland, European Union
tuschano@cc.helsinki.fi ### http://www.helsinki.fi/~tuschano/
      "Omnia praeclara tam difficilia, quam rara sunt."
                 (Baruch Spinoza, 1632-1677)