In my philosphy class we’re reading works by Max Horkheimer, Herbert Marcuse, Frederic Pollock, and (perhaps most painful of all) Theodor Adorno. It’s ushered in a new age of depression for me today. I have to remind myself that there is still hope, but some of these guys paint such a bleak picture of totalitarian Enlightenment that I can’t help but worry that if everything we do falls into negative dialectics that keep the system going.
I have to keep reminding myself, as my friend Luke echos in my ears, “Critically Hope, Mikey, Critical Hope.”
Heh, yes I know exactly what you mean. I tend to feel the same thing when reading them. I find it useful to read some of the cultural critics/materialists, such as Raymond Williams, Dick Hebdige, Alan Sinfield, and John Fiske just to remind myself that there is indeed spaces for resistance and “critical hope” as you say.