TITLE:
Emancipation. From Introvert to Extrovert Critique
AUTHORS:
Rasmus Willig
KEYWORDS:
Critical Theory, Herbert Marcuse, Emancipation
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Applied Sociology,
Vol.4 No.7,
July
31,
2014
ABSTRACT: The article argues that the so-called life-coaches can be seen as
exponents of the ongoing institutionali- zation of the introverted criticism that
apparently leads to more self-criticism and to a feeling of failure rather than
to an actual extroverted criticism of the structural conditions of society.
Thus, the hypothesis is that the inner work with the resources of the self is
so exhausting that it leads to a mental breakdown. The self becomes so
exhausted that if it should make up its mind to criticize the structural
conditions of society; the critique will be dismantled beforehand. But what
then can be understood by the strong concept of “emancipation” today? In line
with Critical Theory’s model for emancipation, the article suggests that the
historical alternative for our time consists in the liberation of the
extroverted criticism. An actual and radical liberation of the possibilities
for practicing criticism—that is, a democratization
and establishment of a critical culture—is the moral potential for development, which must be promoted to pave
the way for any future emancipatory movements.