Istanbul Critical Theory Conference - Adorno and Politics, 2-4 June 2016 Boğaziçi University

Istanbul Critical Theory Conference - Adorno and Politics

Boğaziçi University, 2-4 June 2016

Without a doubt Negative Dialectics is Theodor W. Adorno’s most systematic attempt to ground social theory on a new philosophical foundation. One of the main concerns behind Adorno’s detailed engagement with Hegelian dialectics was to develop a materialist method for social research that would present an alternative to the increasingly anti-philosophical approach of vulgar Marxism to social reality and politics. While his political agenda has been criticized, Adorno’s multifaceted approach nevertheless provides a resource to question some of the pressing issues of social and political reality today. The 50th anniversary of the publication of Negative Dialectics in 2016 provides an excellent opportunity to explore the role that Adorno’s work can play for the future of critical theory. This conference will focus on the following topics in Critical Theory inspired by Adorno’s oeuvre:

•       Art and political action
•       Language, concepts and their political/philosophical significance
•       The (im)possibilities of political practice
•       Adorno and contemporary political theory
•       Exploring the paths opened up by Adorno’s thought
•       With Adorno, beyond Adorno: expanding the horizons of Critical Theory
•       Relations and resonances between Adorno and other critical thinkers, past and present.
•       The relationship between politics and neoliberal economy

Keynote Speakers:

Seyla Benhabib,
Yale University
Jay M. Bernstein,
The New School for Social Research
Susan Buck-Morss,
 CUNY Graduate Center
Maeve Cooke,
 University College Dublin

Organizing Chairs:

Assoc. Prof. Zeynep Gambetti
, Department of Political Science and International Relations,
 Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, Turkey
Assist. Prof. Volkan Cidam, 
Department of Political Science and International Relations,
 Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, Turkey
Dr. Philip Hogh, Adorno Research Center at the Philosophy Department,
 Carl von Ossietzky University, Oldenburg, Germany

Conference website and program: http://adornoconference.boun.edu.tr/
For all queries, please write to: adornoconference@boun.edu.tr
* The conference will be in English only. Download the program.