The price of enlightenment

This book contains thirteen dialogues conducted with eight of the most important German philosophers of the twentieth century, namely: Martin Heidegger, Max Horkheimer, Ernst Bloch, Theodor Adorno, Herbert Marcuse, Jürgen Habermas, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Axel Honneth. These dialogues vary between direct conversations with a single philosopher and bilateral discussions between two philosophers. The dialogues address the paths of modernity and its outcomes in the twentieth century, and as can be seen from the names of these philosophers, the selection largely focused on symbols of German critical theory, represented by the Frankfurt School with its three generations, in addition to other philosophers who are pillars of contemporary German philosophy. These dialogues differ from theoretical books by highlighting the practical aspects of the ideas of these philosophers, who experienced major events in the twentieth century, starting from World War I, to the student revolution of the sixties and seventies, and up to the era of neoliberalism, their views on it, their practical positions, and the extent to which these positions are consistent with their theoretical ideas or not. This book serves as a chronicle of German philosophy and its currents in the twentieth century, and it is also a comprehensive introduction to the ideas of the Frankfurt School. It also includes a critique of modernity and its outcomes, which many researchers consider more serious, profound, and authentic than the French critique that dominated postmodern currents. Therefore, it is indispensable for anyone interested in this field.