T.W. Adorno, H. Becker, and the Challenges of Education in an “Administered World” (1955–1969): Unpublished Radio Conversations from the Theodor W. Adorno Archive
Résumé
Education and pedagogy, although undoubtedly of importance to the first generation of the Frankfurt School thinkers, have remained understudied aspects of their writings and public talks. A handful of authors have attempted to deal with the pedagogical issues at stake both in notable texts by Theodor W. Adorno from the 1950s and 1960s and in published discussions between Adorno and education specialist Hellmut Becker (1913–1993). However, none reflect on the fact that of the eight discussion transcripts based on their broadcast radio conversations, half remain unpublished. All eight appear to form, if not a pre-planned whole, then at least a coherent entity – a constellation that, moreover, helps us to grasp the scope and relevance of Adorno’s interest in educational questions for his social philosophy. This chapter presents the four unpublished discussions and asks how they enrich our understanding of Adorno’s critical theory of education and pedagogy, at the heart of which lies the idea of a living and perpetually renewed negative dialectic.
