Adorno, Theodor W.

Theodor W. Adorno (1903–1969), born Theodor Ludwig Weisengrund, was one of the most important social philosophers and critics in post–World War II Germany. His influence on the philosophy currents of the second half of the 20th century was deep and widespread. For example, Germany’s most renowned contemporary philosopher, Jürgen Habermas, was his student. The hallmark of the Frankfurt School, the research institution to which Adorno belonged, was the vast scope of its interdisciplinary research. The extent of Adorno’s sphere of influence is rooted precisely in the interdisciplinary character of his work. It was also born from the meticulousness with which he studied Western philosophical approaches, particularly those of Immanuel Kant and the neo-Kantians, and from the radical nature of his approach. Adorno is also one ...