''Reason and Revolution: Hegel and the Rise of Social Theory'' (1941; second edition 1954) is a book by the philosopher Herbert Marcuse, in which the author discusses the social theories of the philosophers

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (; ; 27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a German philosopher. He is one of the most important figures in German idealism and one of the founding figures of modern Western philosophy. His influence extends ...

and

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

. Marcuse reinterprets Hegel, with the aim of demonstrating that Hegel's basic concepts are hostile to the tendencies that led to

fascism Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy an ...

. The book has received praise as an important discussion of Hegel and Marx.

Summary

Marcuse attempts to show that "Hegel's basic concepts are hostile to the tendencies that have led into Fascist theory and practice." Marcuse criticizes the thesis, propounded by the sociologist Leonard Hobhouse in ''The Metaphysical Theory of the State'' (1918), that Hegel provided an ideological preparation for German authoritarianism. In an appendix to the 1960 edition, Marcuse states that the "only major recent development in the interpretation of Hegel's philosophy is the postwar revival of Hegel studies in France." Marcuse credits the new French interpretation with showing clearly the "inner connection between the idealistic and materialistic dialectic". He provides a list of key works, including the philosopher

Alexandre Kojève Alexandre Kojève ( , ; 28 April 1902 – 4 June 1968) was a Russian-born French philosopher and statesman whose philosophical seminars had an immense influence on 20th-century French philosophy, particularly via his integration of Hegelian con ...

's '' Introduction to the Reading of Hegel'' (1947).

Publication history

''Reason and Revolution'' was first published by

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

in 1941. A second edition was published by Humanities Press, Inc., in 1954. In 1960, the book was published in a paperback edition by Beacon Press.

Reception

The psychoanalyst Erich Fromm praised ''Reason and Revolution'', calling it "brilliant and penetrating" and "the most important work which has opened up an understanding of Marx's humanism". The historian Peter Gay described the book as one of the most important discussions of alienation in the scholarly literature on Hegel and Marx. Jean-Michel Palmier saw the work as a rejection of Marcuse's '' Hegel's Ontology and the Theory of Historicity'' (1932), an interpretation of Hegel influenced by

Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th ce ...

References

Bibliography

;Books * * * *

External links

marxists.org
- the book

with full texts of 19 reviews and links to on-line excerpts 1941 non-fiction books Books about Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel Books about Karl Marx Books about revolutions Books about Marxism English-language books Oxford University Press books Works by Herbert Marcuse {{poli-philo-book-stub