Professor Stephen Bronner Department of Political Science 790:607 Fall 2013

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Professor Stephen Bronner Department of Political Science 790:607 Fall 2013 Professor Stephen Bronner Department of Political Science 790:607 Fall 2013 Critical Theory and Society This course will center on the most important works of the “Frankfurt School” and the influences upon it. Critical theory will speak issues of aesthetics, politics, sociology, psychology, and anthropology: it emphasized the need for an interdisciplinary perspective from the beginning. The reading is heavy and difficult: be prepared to make a serious commitment to this course. Requirements will include essays of about 12 typed pages and strong class participation. Required Readings: Theodor Adorno, Hegel: Three Studies Walter Benjamin, Illuminations Stephen Eric Bronner and Douglas Kellner (eds.), Critical Theory and Society Stephen Eric Bronner, Of Critical Theory and Its Theorists Stephen Eric Bronner, Reclaiming the Enlightenment Erich Fromm, Marx’s Conception of Man Georg Lukács, History and Class Consciousness Max Horkheimer, Critical Theory: Selected Essays Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno, Dialectic of Enlightenment Herbert Marcuse, Eros and Civilization Background Readings: Stephen Eric Bronner, Critical Theory: A Very Short Introduction Jürgen Habermas, The Philosophical Discourse of Modernity Martin Jay, The Dialectical Imagination Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School Most of the required readings are available online: See the hyperlinks below and Sakai for digital versions. Course Outline Week 1: Marx, Economic & Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 in Fromm, Marx’s Concept of Man, pp.78-152; “Introduction” and Horkheimer, “The State of Contemporary Philosophy” in Bronner and Kellner (eds.), Critical Theory and Society, pp. 1-21 & 25-36; Bronner, “Introduction” and “Sketching the Lineage” from Of Critical Theory and Its Theorists, pp. 3-10 & 11-38 Week 2-3: Lukács, “What is Orthodox Marxism?,” “Class Consciousness,” and “Reification and the Consciousness of the Proletariat” from History and Class Consciousness, pp. 1-26, 46-82 & 83-222; Ernst Bloch, “Non-contemporaneity and Obligation to its Dialectics” from Heritage of Our Times, pp. 97-148 (on Sakai) Week 4: Horkheimer, “Traditional and Critical Theory” and “Materialism and Metaphysics (on Sakai)” in Critical Theory, pp. 188-243 & 10-46; Marcuse, “Philosophy and Society” in Critical Theory and Society, pp. 58-74; Bronner, “Horkheimer’s Road” from Of Critical Theory and Its Theorists, pp. 77-95 Week 5: Benjamin, “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction” and “Theses on the Philosophy of History” in Illuminations, pp. 217-251 & 253-264; Bronner, “Rescuing the Fragments: On the Messianic Materialism of Walter Benjamin” from Of Critical Theory and Its Theorists, pp. 96-115 Week 6-7: Horkheimer and Adorno, Dialectic of Enlightenment (on Sakai); Bronner, Reclaiming the Enlightenment Week 8: Marcuse, Eros and Civilization (on Sakai); Fromm, “The Crisis of Psychoanalysis” in Critical Theory and Society, pp. 247-252; Bronner, “Utopia, Aesthetics, and Revolution: Herbert Marcuse and the Radical Imagination” from Of Critical Theory and its Theorists, pp. 172-188 Week 9-10: Habermas, “The Public Sphere;” Pollock, “State Capitalism;” Marcuse, “Liberation from the Affluent Society;” Adorno, “The Culture Industry Reconsidered” and “Jazz” in Critical Theory and Society, pp. 136-142, 95-118, 276-287, 128-135, 199-209; Bronner, “Dialectics at a Standstill: A Methodological Inquiry into the Philosophy of Theodor W. Adorno” from Of Critical Theory and its Theorists, pp. 137-155 Week 11: Adorno, Introduction to Aesthetic Theory (on Sakai), Introduction to Negative Dialectics (on Sakai), “Trying to Understand Endgame,” Hegel: Three Studies Week 12-13: Habermas, “The Tasks of Critical Theory” in Critical Theory and Society, pp. 292-312; Bronner, “Jürgen Habermas and the Language of Politics” and “Critical Theory and Civil Society: Political Interests, Private Passions, and the Public Sphere” from Of Critical Theory and Its Theorists, pp. 189-213 & 214- 230 Week 14: Bronner, “Points of Departure: Sketches for a Critical Theory with Public Aims” from Of Critical Theory and Its Theorists, pp. 231-258 .
Recommended publications
  • Marxism in the Works of Erich Fromm and the Crisis of Socialism Enzo
    Propriety of the Erich Fromm Document Center. For personal use only. Citation or publication of mate- rial prohibited without express written permission of the copyright holder. Eigentum des Erich Fromm Dokumentationszentrums. Nutzung nur für persönliche Zwecke. Veröffentli- chungen – auch von Teilen – bedürfen der schriftlichen Erlaubnis des Rechteinhabers. Marxism in the Works of Erich Fromm and the Crisis of Socialism Enzo Lio Paper presented as a first draft on the seminar of the International Erich Fromm Society on Charac- ter Structure and Society, Janus Pannonius University, Pécs/Hungary, August 24-26, 1990. - First published in the Yearbook of the International Erich Fromm Society, Vol. 2: Erich Fromm und die Kritische Theorie, Münster: LIT-Verlag, 1991, pp. 250-264. Copyright © 1991 and 2011 by Dr. Enzo Lio, Vicolo Quartirolo 5, I-40121 Bologna, Italy; E-Mail: en- zo.lio[at-symbol]@tele2.it. - Translation from Italian by Susan Garton, Bologna. 1. Introduction che is the product of the collective life history of humankind. This constitutes a scientifically valid The crisis of socialism, in the light of the histori- approach within the tradition of humanistic cal events that have provoked its downfall in thought insofar as, by using modern and effi- Eastern Europe, had already been discussed in cient scientific tools (psychoanalysis and the so- our Fromm Institute in Bologna, at the end of cial sciences) a closer and deeper investigation of 1989. Romano Biancoli maintained that Fromm the needs and motivations of human beings is had been proved right in his vision of Marxism possible. and of real socialism. I realized that, if Fromm The starting point for Fromm’s research is were still alive he would not be surprised by this precisely this, the search for the real and deep turn of events, which he hopes for in all his motives behind human action.
    [Show full text]
  • 8. Erich Fromm's Social-Psychological
    RUDOLF SIEBERT 8. ERICH FROMM’S SOCIAL-PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORY OF RELIGION Toward the X-Experience and the City of Being INTRODUCTION1 This essay explores Erich Fromm’s social-psychological theory of religion, as X- experience and longing for the City of Being, as being informed by the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, Meister Eckhart as well as Georg W.F Hegel, Karl Marx, and Sigmund Freud. Its religious attitude constituted the very dynamic of Fromm’s writings, as well as of those of the other critical theorists of society, e.g. Max Horkheimer, Theodor W. Adorno, Walter Benjamin, Leo Loewenthal, Herbert Marcuse, etc., It united them. It could only be expressed in poetical symbols: the X-experience; or the longing for the imageless, nameless, notionless utterly Other than the horror and terror of nature and history; or the yearning for perfect justice and unconditional love: that the murderer may not triumph over the innocent victim, at least not ultimately. Man begins to become man only with the awakening of this longing for the entirely Other, or the X-experience. This religious attitude aims as idology at the destruction of all idolatry. In the Near East –––––––––––––– 1 Editors’ note-The author’s use of Fromm’s concept of “x-experience” comes from this passage in his work: What we call the religious attitude is an x that is expressible only in poetic and visual symbols. This x experience has been articulated in various concepts which have varied in accordance with the social organization of a particular cultural period. In the Near East, x was expressed in the concept of a supreme tribal chief, or king, and thus „God” became the supreme concept of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, which were rooted in the social structures of that area.
    [Show full text]
  • The Indispensability of Erich Fromm
    The Indispensability of Erich Fromm: The Rehabilitation of a "Forgotten" Psychoanalyst Erich Fromm Lecture – International Psychoanalytic University Berlin, October 13, 2016 Peter L. Rudnytsky "Some human beings affect you so deeply that your life is forever changed." – Gérard D. Khoury, "A Crucial Encounter" "Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand it. ... It is simply a question of which side one takes and what approach one follows." – George Orwell, "Why I Write" his unjustly tarnished reputation, whose dedi- 1 cated participants include Marco Bacciaga- luppi and Ferenc Erős and that owes every- It always begins for me with an act of reading. thing to Rainer Funk, Fromm’s literary execu- Winnicott’s Playing and Reality (1971), tor and supremely faithful custodian of his Ferenczi’s Clinical Diary (Dupont, 1985), legacy. Groddeck’s Book of the It (1923), Nina Col- tart’s "Slouching towards Bethlehem" (1986), The more I immersed myself in Fromm, the or – to go back to the beginning – Ernest more I was struck by how much my long- Jones’s (1953-1957) biography of Freud and, standing concerns have overlapped with his even before that, Norman O. Brown’s Life and how much I would have benefited had I Against Death (1959): all these have been, for heeded his writings sooner. Shortly before me, life-changing experiences, the most pas- beginning this odyssey, I had published an sionate love affairs in my lifelong romance essay (Rudnytsky, 2014) comparing Freud to with psychoanalysis.
    [Show full text]
  • The Transference in the Humanist Perspective of Erich Fromm Jorge
    Publikation des Erich-Fromm-Archivs, Tübingen Publication of the Erich Fromm Archive, Tuebingen, Germany Copyright © beim Autor / by the author The Transference in the Humanist Perspective of Erich Fromm Jorge Silva García Paper presented at the Hospital Central Militar in Mexico City on June 21st, 1991. Copyright © 1991 and 2009 by Dr. Jorge Silva García, Joaquín Romo 171, Tlalpan, México, D.F. 14410, México, E-Mail: jsilvag82[at-symbol]prodigy.net.mx. Fromm states (1979 p. 38): flict is his fear of aloneness, often lived as a ceas- “Another crucial concept in Freud's system ing to be, as not being. is that of transference first observed it in the "The transference phenomenon, namely the Case of Anna O. (Breuer and Freud 1893, voluntary dependence of a person on an- and Freud 1910). This concept was the re- other person in authority, because he/she sult of the clinical observation that analy- feels helpless, in need of a leader, of a sands develop a strong tie to the person of strong authority and is ready to submit to the analyst during the treatment. This tie this authority, is one of the most important could of times be love, admiration, attach- phenomena in social life, quite beyond the ment and, at others, a blending of hate, individual family and the analytic situation. opposition and aggression”. Anybody who is willing to see can discover “What makes this transference particu- the tremendous role that transference plays larly interesting is that it grows out of the socially, politically and in religious life. One therapeutic situation rather than out of the has only to look at the faces in a crowd that qualities of the analyst.
    [Show full text]
  • Psychoanalysis and Social Theory - Anthony Elliott
    HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS AND THEORETICAL APPROACHES IN SOCIOLOGY - Vol. I - Psychoanalysis and Social Theory - Anthony Elliott PSYCHOANALYSIS AND SOCIAL THEORY Anthony Elliott Flinders University, Australia Keywords: Conscious, unconscious, the decentred subject, "de-psychologization" of the subject, narcissism. utopic dimension, repression, repetition, negativity, repression, drives, representation, trauma, narcissism, denial, displacement: selfhood the Oedipus complex, Frankfurt School, "post-psychological individual", fascism, totalitarian societies, repression- "basic" and "surplus" ,"repressive desublimation” Contents 1. Introduction 2. Freud and the Interpretation of the Social 2.1 Human Subjectivity 2.2 Social Analysis 2.3 Epistemology. 3. The Legacy of Freud 4. Psychopathologies of Rationality: The Frankfurt School 4.1 Erich Fromm 4.2 Herbert Marcuse 5. Contemporary Critical Theory: Habermas's Reading of Freud and the Theorem of Distorted Communication 6. Returning to Freud: Jacques Lacan 7. Advantages and Limitations of Lacan's Theory 8. Lacanian and Post-Lacanian Contexts 9. Feminist Psychoanalytic Criticism 10. Psychoanalysis and Postmodern Theory Acknowledgement Glossary Bibliography Biographical Sketch Summary Social theory has the task of providing conceptions of the nature of human agency, social UNESCOlife and the cultural products of human– actionEOLSS which can be placed in the services of the social sciences and humanities in general. Among other problems, social theory is concerned with language and the interpretation of meaning, the character of social institutions, theSAMPLE explication of social practices CHAPTERS and processes, questions of social transformation and the like. The reproduction of social life, however, is never only a matter of impersonal "processes" and "structures": it is also created and lived within, in the depths of an inner world, of our most personal needs, passions and desires.
    [Show full text]
  • The Greatness and Limitations of Erich Fromm's Humanism
    Contemporary Psychoanalysis ISSN: 0010-7530 (Print) 2330-9091 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uucp20 The Greatness and Limitations of Erich Fromm’s Humanism Mauricio Cortina M.D. To cite this article: Mauricio Cortina M.D. (2015) The Greatness and Limitations of Erich Fromm’s Humanism, Contemporary Psychoanalysis, 51:3, 388-422, DOI: 10.1080/00107530.2015.999297 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00107530.2015.999297 Published online: 18 Sep 2015. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 43 View related articles View Crossmark data Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=uucp20 Download by: [Joshua Davis] Date: 06 November 2015, At: 12:24 Contemporary Psychoanalysis, 2015, Vol. 51, No. 3: 388–422. C William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis & Psychology and the William Alanson White Psychoanalytic Society ISSN: 0010-7530 print / 2330-9091 online DOI: 10.1080/00107530.2015.999297 MAURICIO CORTINA, M.D. THE GREATNESS AND LIMITATIONS OF ERICH FROMM’S HUMANISM Abstract. Erich Fromm’s most important contribution to “the science of man” and psychoanalysis was the development of an existential humanism. This existen- tial bent was based on his view that the human condition developed over the course of human evolution trans-survival needs for meaning that transcended our biological needs for survival. His second important contribution was a bril- liant Marx–Freud synthesis, which he used to explore how ideologies can mask economic conditions, and how shared social values that are internalized (social character) are adaptive to socioeconomic conditions.
    [Show full text]
  • The Relationship Between the Individual and Society”: Broadening and Deepening Relational Thinking in Group Analysis
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Birkbeck Institutional Research Online BEYOND “THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE INDIVIDUAL AND SOCIETY”: BROADENING AND DEEPENING RELATIONAL THINKING IN GROUP ANALYSIS Sasha Roseneil Group Analysis (2013) 46(2), 196-210. Contact details: Professor Sasha Roseneil Department of Psychosocial Studies/ Birkbeck Institute for Social Research Birkbeck, University of London Malet Street London WC1E 7HX [email protected] 1 Beyond “the relationship between the individual and society”: broadening and deepening relational thinking in group analysis Sasha Roseneil Abstract The question of “the relationship between the individual and society” has troubled group analysis since its inception. This paper offers a reading of Foulkes that highlights the emergent, yet evanescent, psychosocial ontology in his writings, and argues for the development of a truly psychosocial group analysis, which moves beyond the individual/society dualism. It argues for a shift towards a language of relationality, and proposes new theoretical resources for such a move from relational sociology, relational psychoanalysis and the “matrixial thinking” of Bracha Ettinger which would broaden and deepen group analytic understandings of relationality. Keywords: individual; society; group analysis; relationality; relational sociology; relational psychoanalysis; Foulkes; psychosocial. Author contact details: Professor Sasha Roseneil, Department of Psychosocial Studies, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX. [email protected] tel: 020 3073 8362 2 Introduction A preoccupation with the troubling question of “the relationship between the individual and society” is one of the distinctive characteristics of group analysis as a psychotherapeutic modality. Both the body of writing that constitutes “group-analytic thinking”, and the training programmes that transmit and reproduce group analysis devote considerable attention to this knotty problem.
    [Show full text]
  • Erich Fromm – a Therapeutic Vision Well Ahead of Its Time
    Journal of Experiential Psychotherapy, vol. 22, no 3 (87) September 2019 Erich Fromm – a Therapeutic Vision Well Ahead of its Time. Erich Fromm’s Contribution to Experiential Psychotherapy Cristina Enescu (Matei)i Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bucharest Abstract Introduction: Erich Fromm (1900-1980) was a German psychoanalyst, his work focused on several areas of human knowledge: social psychology, Psychoanalysis, sociology, humanist philosophy, ethics etc. Fromm used the “here and now” presence from Zen Buddhism, the importance of being “centrally related” to the client in his psychoanalytical practice. Experiential psychotherapy adapts to the client, trying through any creative method to help them overcome difficulties, discover themselves and restructure those parts that bring pain. Objectives: 1. To name Fromm’s contribution to psychology and psychotherapy, his theories and private practice. 2. To identify the connection between Erich Fromm’s theories and modern Experiential psychotherapy. This paper is focused on the different ways Fromm’s work as a psychoanalyst and philosophical thinker can help therapists include the social and ethical dimensions of his theories in to their practice. Methods: Analyzing Erich Fromm’s theoretical work and private psychoanalytical practice. Fromm’s vision of man, as psychoanalyst, is full of healing goodwill, using ethics and theoretical morals as a guiding thread of practice. In his works he seems to want to unite theory with practice, so that there is no distinction between the theoretical ideal and the practical living of the individual and humanity. Results: Using Erich Fromm’s perspective in the practice of Experiential psychotherapy. The dual, alienated mind-body perspective of Descartes, and others like him, is different from Erich Fromm’s vision, which is more integrated, holistic, as one could say.
    [Show full text]
  • NEO-FREUDIANS: Harry Stack-Sullivan (Lecture Series-2)
    1 NEO-FREUDIANS: Harry Stack-Sullivan (Lecture Series-2) B.A. Ist (Honors) (Paper-IVth : Systems in Psychology) By Dr. Masaud Ansari Department of Psychology, A.P.S.M. College, Barauni L. N. M. University, Darbhanga 22nd OCTOBER 2020 2 Neo-Freudian’s view Freud’s writings were controversial, but they soon attracted followers, mostly young, ambitious physicians who formed an inner circle around their strong minded leader. These pioneering psychoanalysts, whom we often call neo- Freudians, accepted Freud’s basic ideas: the personality structures of id, ego, and superego; the importance of the unconscious; the shaping of personality in childhood; and the dynamics of anxiety and the defense mechanisms. But they broke off from Freud in two important ways. First, they placed more emphasis on the conscious mind’s role in interpreting experience and in coping with the environment. And second, they doubted that sex and aggression were all - consuming motivations. Instead, they tended to emphasize loftier motives and social interactions. 3 Neo-Freudian Neo-Freudian referring to modifications, extensions, or revisions of Freud’s original psychoanalytic theory, most commonly to those that emphasize social, cultural and interpersonal elements rather than innate biological instincts such as sexuality and aggressio. Major theorists described as neo-Freudian are 1. Alfred Adler (1870-1937) 2. Karen Horney (1885-1952) 3. Erich Seligmann Fromm (1900-1980) 4. Harry Stack-Sullivan (1892-1943) 5. Erik Homburger Erikson (1902 –1994) 4 Neo-Freudian’s major Disagreements with Freud 1. Socio-cultural factors determine conflicts, not instincts. 2. Infantile sexuality is of little importance compared to socio-cultural factors.
    [Show full text]
  • Fromm's Approach to Psychoanalytic Theory and Its Relevance for Therapeutic Work Rainer Funk 1. Fromm's Analytic Social Psycholo
    Copyright by Rainer Funk. For personal use only. Citation or publication prohibited without express written permission of the copyright holder. Coypright bei Rainer Funk. Nutzung nur für persönliche Zwecke. Veröffentlichungen – auch von Teilen – bedürfen der schriftlichen Erlaubnis des Rechteinhabers. Funk_R_1993h Fromm's Approach to Psychoanalytic Theory and Its Relevance for Therapeutic Work Rainer Funk Lecture given at the Instituto Mexicano de Psicoanálisis A. C. (IMPAC) in connection with a Seminar on Socio-psychoanalytic Field Research on October 15, 1992. „Fromm's approach to psychoanalytic theory and its relevance for therapeutic work,“ in: Institutio Mexicano de Psi- coanalisis, El caracter social, su estudio, un intercambio de experiencias, Coyoacán 1972, pp. 17-43. Copyright © 1993 and 2011 by Dr. Rainer Funk, Ursrainer Ring 24, D-72076 Tuebingen, Germany; E-Mail: funk[at-symbol]fromm-online.com. 1. Fromm's Analytic Social Psychological Approach Fromm's social psychological interest originated in his religious upbringing as well as in his academic interests; this is evident from his studies in sociology and his dissertation on Jewish law he finished in 1922 at Heidelberg university. Seven years later Freudian psy- choanalysis permitted a new formulation of his social psychological interest, at that time, namely, in the language of Freud's instinct theory. His attempt to combine sociological and psychoanalytic theory has, in reality, hardly received any attention up to the pre- sent. One of the main reasons for this is the fact that there are few sociologists who have had training in psychoanalysis, and also that psychologists, because of their metapsy- chological theories, are hardly capable of sociological thinking.
    [Show full text]
  • Impact of Psychology on Critical Theory: Erich Fromm, Narcissism and Solidarity
    IMPACT OF PSYCHOLOGY ON CRITICAL THEORY: ERICH FROMM, NARCISSISM AND SOLIDARITY A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY TOYGUN KARAHASANOĞLU IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS SEPTEMBER 2018 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Özlem Tür Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Faruk Yalvaç Supervisor Examining Committee Members Assist. Prof. Dr. Şebnem Udum (Hacettepe Uni., IR) Prof. Dr. Faruk Yalvaç (METU, IR) Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zana Çitak (METU, IR) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name : Toygun Karahasanoğlu Signature : iii ABSTRACT IMPACT OF PSYCHOLOGY ON CRITICAL THEORY: ERICH FROMM, NARCISSISM AND SOLIDARITY Karahasanoğlu, Toygun M.S., Department of International Relations Supervisor : Prof. Dr. Faruk Yalvaç September 2018, 201 pages This work aims to contribute to emancipatory purpose of International Critical Theory by utilizing Erich Fromm’s psychoanalytical theory. In International Relations literature, usage of theoretical tools of the discipline of psychology has not been invoked in parallel with the aims of Critical Theory.
    [Show full text]
  • The Young Erich Fromm's Contribution to Criminology*
    THE YOUNG ERICH FROMM'S CONTRIBUTION TO CRIMINOLOGY* KEVIN ANDERSON Northern Illinois University Erich Fromm's virtually unknown early writings on crime were published in German in psychoanalytic journals in the early 1930s, but have never been translated into English. In three articles published in 1930 and 1931, Fromm considered the criminaljustice system as an important legitimating institution within the capitalist social order. His theoretical contribution to criminology is discussed here as a largely unknown but important chapter in the history of criminology, one which can still speak to us today. I also assess his contribution from several vantage points: (1) its relationship to earlier German liberal criminological reformers such as Liszt and Aschaf- fenburg; (2) its connection to the Frankfurt School's synthesis of Marxism and psychoanalysis, which underlay their account of the leanings of large sectors of the German population toward authoritarianism; (3) the differ- ence in focus between Fromm's work and that of other psychoanalytic crimi- nologists of the period, such as Alexander and Staub; and (4) comparisons with other leading European radical theorists who subsequently wrote on crime: the Frankfurt School's Rusche and Kirchheimer, the French psycho- analyst Lacan, and the French post-structuralist Foucault. I conclude that Fromm's work contains important insights for contemporary criminology. The young Erich Fromm's Freudian Marxist critiques of the criminal justice system seem to have disappeared into oblivion. Published in German in leading psychoanalytic journals in 1930 and 1931, Fromm's three scholarly articles on crime constitute an important and original discussion of how the fear of crime and the Downloaded By: [CDL Journals Account] At: 19:38 17 September 2009 role of the state in repressing crime support and legitimate the ex- isting capitalist social order.
    [Show full text]