Precarious Happiness (Peter E. Gordon)

The provided text offers excerpts from a philosophical work by Peter E. Gordon, titled Prekäres Glück: Adorno und die Quellen der Normativität, which focuses on the critical theory of Theodor W. Adorno. The discussion centers on Adorno's legacy, exploring his contributions across philosophy, sociology, and aesthetics, and engaging with interpretations by other thinkers like Jürgen Habermas and Axel Honneth. Central to the analysis is Adorno's complex concept of immanent critique, which seeks to locate normative potential—such as the possibility of freedom and genuine human flourishing—within the contradictions and flaws of modern society, rejecting the idea of absolute societal falsity or purely transcendent ideals. Furthermore, the text ...