Theodor Adorno Quotes

A collection of quotes by Theodor Adorno.

Theodor Adorno (1903-1969) was a prominent German philosopher, sociologist, musicologist, and composer. He was born in Frankfurt, Germany, and grew up in a cultured, middle-class family. Adorno received his education in philosophy, sociology, and musicology at the University of Frankfurt, where he later became a professor.

Adorno is best known for his critical theory, which critiques social structures and cultural trends influenced by capitalism. He was deeply influenced by the ideas of Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud and sought to bridge the gap between philosophy and social analysis. Adorno believed that culture played a significant role in maintaining the oppressive nature of capitalist societies, and he explored this theme in his renowned work, "The Culture Industry: Enlightenment as Mass Deception."

In addition to his philosophical and sociological work, Adorno was also an accomplished musicologist and composer. He collaborated with his close friend and fellow philosopher, Max Horkheimer, on the influential book "Dialectic of Enlightenment," analyzing the role of media and popular culture in shaping people's consciousness.

Adorno's ideas continue to be highly influential in various fields such as sociology, philosophy, and cultural studies. He is considered one of the key figures of the Frankfurt School and has left a lasting impact on critical theory and social thought. Theodor Adorno passed away in Switzerland in 1969, leaving behind a rich intellectual legacy.

The importance of the culture industry in the spiritual cons

The importance of the culture industry in the spiritual constitution of the masses is no dispensation for reflection on its objective legitimation, its essential being, least of all by a science which thinks itself pragmatic.

Science Culture

Intelligence is a moral category.

Intelligence is a moral category.

No emancipation without that of society.

No emancipation without that of society.

Not only is the self entwined in society it owes society its

Not only is the self entwined in society it owes society its existence in the most literal sense.

Every work of art is an uncommitted crime.

Every work of art is an uncommitted crime.

The almost insoluble task is to let neither the power of oth

The almost insoluble task is to let neither the power of others, nor our own powerlessness, stupefy us.

Only a humanity to whom death has become as indifferent as i

Only a humanity to whom death has become as indifferent as its members, that has itself died, can inflict it administratively on innumerable people.

History does not merely touch on language, but takes place i

History does not merely touch on language, but takes place in it.

In the age of the individual's liquidation, the question of

In the age of the individual's liquidation, the question of individuality must be raised anew.

Normality is death.

Normality is death.

Truth is inseperable from the illusory belief that from the

Truth is inseperable from the illusory belief that from the figures of the unreal one day, in spite of all, real deliverance will come.

Technology is making gestures precise and brutal, and with t

Technology is making gestures precise and brutal, and with them men.

If time is money, it seems moral to save time, above all one

If time is money, it seems moral to save time, above all one's own, and such parsimony is excused by consideration for others. One is straight-forward.

A pencil and rubber are of more use to thought than a battal

A pencil and rubber are of more use to thought than a battalion of assistants. To happiness the same applies as to truth: one does not have it, but is in it.

If you go and talk to most people, they mean well but they d

If you go and talk to most people, they mean well but they don't have much of a breadth on education, of knowledge of understanding what the real issues are and therefore they listen to pundits on television who tell them what they are supposed to think and they keep repeating that until pretty soon they say, 'Oh, well that must be true.'

Benjamin Carson

Freedom would be not to choose between black and white but t

Freedom would be not to choose between black and white but to abjure such prescribed choices.

An emancipated society, on the other hand, would not be a un

An emancipated society, on the other hand, would not be a unitary state, but the realization of universality in the reconciliation of differences.

Art is magic delivered from the lie of being truth.

Art is magic delivered from the lie of being truth.

Happiness is obsolete: uneconomic.

Happiness is obsolete: uneconomic.

He who stands aloof runs the risk of believing himself bette

He who stands aloof runs the risk of believing himself better than others and misusing his critique of society as an ideology for his private interest.