The Spaces and Networks of Critical Theory

In this conversation at the Review of Democracy, Philipp Lenhard – author of the new book Café Marx. Das

Institut für Sozialforschung von den Anfängen bis zur Frankfurter Schule (Café Marx. The Institute for Social Research from the Beginnings to the Frankfurt School) – discusses the history of the Institute For Social Research and the Frankfurt School and his approach to this subject; shows what his exploration of less famous actors in this history and his focus on spaces and networks have yielded; and reflects on what the impact of the Institute for Social Research and the Frankfurt School has been like – and what might be most relevant about critical theory today.

Philipp Lenhard is a DAAD Professor at the Department of History, the University of California, Berkeley. He completed his PhD and Habilitation at the University of Munich. His research interests include Modern Jewish History; Modern German History;  Intellectual History; Critical Theory and the Frankfurt School; and Comparative European History.

Café Marx. Das Institut für Sozialforschung von den Anfängen bis zur Frankfurter Schule (Café Marx. The Institute for Social Research from the Beginnings to the Frankfurt School) has been published by C.H. Beck.

The conversation was conducted by Ferenc Laczó. Lucie Hunter prepared the recording for publication.