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Critical Theory Working Group

@crittheoryworkgrp

Resources & open reading groups for collective study of early Critical Theory. Website: https://ctwgwebsite.github.io/ Podcast feed: https://media.rss.com/critique-of-the-podcast-form/feed.xml

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Latest posts by Critical Theory Working Group @crittheoryworkgrp

...and therefore leave it unable to properly recognise both the existence of the Palestinian people and the crimes committed against them by "Israel". This condition, Eghbariah argues, is best captured through the concept of Nakba (Catastrophe) and its ideological counterpartβ€”Zionism.

06.03.2026 17:43 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

The simple, forceful, and comprehensively put argument that warranted such suppression is this: the law and legal theory lack the language to speak the reality of the Palestinian condition...

06.03.2026 17:43 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Displaced, the article was taken in by the Columbia Law Review. But here too it found itself ultimately unwelcome, as upon publication the entire Columbia Law Review website was shut down by the Review’s board in a vain attempt at suppression.

06.03.2026 17:43 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Rabea Eghbariah’s β€œToward Nakba as a Legal Concept” is an essay that has, in a way, performed itself. Originally solicited, edited, and approved by the Harvard Law Review, its publication was subsequently vetoed by the leadership of the journal.

06.03.2026 17:43 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Rabea Eghbariah's Towards Nakba as a Legal Concept (9/06), presented by Esther Planas Balduz and Imogen | Critical Theory Working Group Get more from Critical Theory Working Group on Patreon

NEW: Rabea Eghbariah's Towards Nakba as a Legal Concept (9/06), presented by Esther Planas Balduz and Imogen

www.patreon.com/posts/152204...

06.03.2026 17:43 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

tap in you can hear me rant about how much I love Erica Benner’s Machiavelli books lol

06.03.2026 04:17 πŸ‘ 14 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Helen, Esther, and Crane tackle the first book of Machiavelli's Discourses on Livy, reading Machiavelli as a precursor to historical materialism and a radical republican. In the process, they pose the question: what can the critical theory of society learn from Machiavelli today?

05.03.2026 15:50 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Saint Nick

Saint Nick

NEW:
Critique of the Podcast Form, Episode 14: Discussing the Discorsi
www.patreon.com/posts/152308...

05.03.2026 15:50 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 2

Really these are 3 more sketches towards Adorno-Horkheimer’s planned histomat response to Freud’s Moses & Monotheism, which is one of the secret keys to A&H’s 1940s theory & social research

03.03.2026 22:13 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
03.03.2026 08:10 πŸ‘ 12 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Got a little clocky on this one

26.02.2026 00:26 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Adorno in Halloween outfit

Adorno in Halloween outfit

Please enjoy this photo of Adorno in full Halloween costume with his family.

16.09.2025 02:16 πŸ‘ 29 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
In some notes that record his own personal dreams, Adorno
describes one vision in particular which gave shape to his life and
his desire to live despite the horrors he observed in the world. He
discovers a deep longing for the reality of an after-life, after dreaming that he and his wife Gretel are in a terrible bus accident while
on vacation. Following the impact, Adorno wakes up crying, and
says as he looks over to his wife, β€˜I would so like to have kept on
being alive with you’.121 For Adorno, the utopian hope of eternal life
presses him to recognize the significance of the other he meets on a
daily basis. His connection to this human being presents to him the
question of what kind of partner he intends to be.

In some notes that record his own personal dreams, Adorno describes one vision in particular which gave shape to his life and his desire to live despite the horrors he observed in the world. He discovers a deep longing for the reality of an after-life, after dreaming that he and his wife Gretel are in a terrible bus accident while on vacation. Following the impact, Adorno wakes up crying, and says as he looks over to his wife, β€˜I would so like to have kept on being alive with you’.121 For Adorno, the utopian hope of eternal life presses him to recognize the significance of the other he meets on a daily basis. His connection to this human being presents to him the question of what kind of partner he intends to be.

poor Adorno :(

16.09.2025 01:30 πŸ‘ 118 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 2

This was such a rich and helpful discussion!

Even if you haven't been obsessing over Horkheimer's Montaigne essay for the last year or so like me, you should definitely give it a listen.

21.02.2026 15:39 πŸ‘ 10 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Crane and Helen talk about Horkheimer's 1938 essay "Montaigne and the Function of Skepticism," which sees Horkheimer both show the skeptical core of both religious dogmatism and philosophical skepticism, as well as its changing valence throughout the development of the capitalist mode of production.

20.02.2026 15:58 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Episode 13: A User's Guide to Montaigne and the Function of Skepticism | Critical Theory Working Group Get more from Critical Theory Working Group on Patreon

NEW FROM CRITIQUE OF THE PODCAST FORM:
A User's Guide to Montaigne and the Function of Skepticism

www.patreon.com/posts/151245...

20.02.2026 15:58 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 5 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 3
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translation of Horkheimer’s β€œlast letter” to Henryk Grossman in Jan 1943, which I read not as a breakup letter (it is one, & most do) but as a missed encounter over a shared problem: conceptualizing the unity of β€œevolutionary” & β€œrevolutionary” moments in Marx’s critique of political economy πŸ”— ⬇️

20.02.2026 04:20 πŸ‘ 9 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 1
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The β€œAdorno & Communism?” seminar series starts next week! Excited to talk about these texts with you all!

19.02.2026 00:04 πŸ‘ 23 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 1
Post image Post image Post image

don’t think I ever posted this one here so: check out this birthday card / memo Adorno sends to Horkheimer in 1944

β€œHey VALENTINE!
Been doin’ LOTS of worryin’…
and here’s the reason why
I don’t know how I stand with you,
YOU GREAT BIG WONDERFUL GUY!”

23.04.2025 08:47 πŸ‘ 62 πŸ” 25 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 7

Happy birthday to Max Horkheimer, born on this day in 1895.

14.02.2026 14:33 πŸ‘ 9 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
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Horkheimer, 1942/44

08.02.2026 23:53 πŸ‘ 78 πŸ” 24 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
Preview
Episode 11: Situationism and the Critique of Reification | Critical Theory Working Group Get more from Critical Theory Working Group on Patreon

NEW:
Imogen, Sebastian, and Sam discuss Situationism as a vindication of Hegelian Marxism and a critique of reified life through its various forms of appearance: artistic production, urban planning, and student life.
www.patreon.com/posts/150114...

08.02.2026 16:53 πŸ‘ 16 πŸ” 5 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Γ§a ira-Verlag publishes apologies empire has never needed for murderers who will never read them and defends genocide in Gaza with the whitewashed words of Marxists who escaped it in Auschwitz. Palestine will be free, long live the resistance. Fuck off forever.

06.02.2026 03:01 πŸ‘ 32 πŸ” 7 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Γ‡a n'ira pas (on zionism in the β€˜critical theory’ scene)

Read more from β€œVariations”:

05.02.2026 23:40 πŸ‘ 21 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Episode 10: Working Through the Past with Ernst Bloch | Critical Theory Working Group Get more from Critical Theory Working Group on Patreon

POD EP10: Esther & Sebastian discuss Bloch’s 1932 fragment Nonsychronism & the Obligation to its Dialectics, a text that β€œtakes its place inappropriately” (Benjamin)β€”on revolutions past, reaction present, & utopias future!
patreon.com/posts/episod...

29.01.2026 15:19 πŸ‘ 24 πŸ” 12 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1

Of interest for people who want to see how Adorno deduces how neo-Kantians treat teleology as merely heuristic, how Horkheimer thinks error and development, and some cool connections in the intro on post-Kantian philsci!

25.01.2026 13:52 πŸ‘ 15 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Critical Methods in the Social Sciences (1940) Two Lectures: Adorno on G. Simmel; Horkheimer on W. Dilthey.

where are my method-heads at you all are going to love this one

open.substack.com/pub/jamescra...

25.01.2026 11:46 πŸ‘ 25 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1

ICYMI: Critique of the Podcast Form has an RSS feed and is now available on all podcast streaming platforms except Spotify!
media.rss.com/critique-of-...

28.12.2025 16:22 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
The Anime Question | Podcast Episode on RSS.com The culture industry is at it again! Their new weapon: anime. Their strategy? The media mix. In this episode, the anime subcommittee of the CTWG tackle the anime media-form by discussing Marc Steinber...

So our RSS for this episode is: rss.com/podcasts/cri...

28.12.2025 15:45 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

But we also have an RSS feed, which allows you to listen to the pod on all major podcast platforms (except Spotify, for obvious reasons): media.rss.com/critique-of-...

28.12.2025 15:44 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 2