The Culture Industry Revisited: Theodor W. Adorno on Mass Culture

(Paperback)

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As the culture wars continue to dominate newspaper headlines and conference panels, much of the debate revolves around the value and values of popular culture. Many opponents of mass culture have cited Theodor Adorno, one of the leading figures of the Frankfurt School of critical theorists. Adorno is understood to have viewed mass culture as completely commodified - that is, produced only to be sold on the market, and without aesthetic value. In this compelling book, Deborah Cook critically examines this view and argues persuasively that even in Adorno's "pessimistic" theory, mass culture can be understood as potentially liberating. Beginning with an exploration of the theoretical background for Adorno's work, Cook then examines Adorno's conception and criticism of mass culture and its consumption, and his views about art and its relation to mass culture. The first book-length treatment in English of Adorno's work on popular culture, "The Culture Industry Revisited" provides new readers of Adorno with an understanding of his theory and an overview of his more important critics. Those more familiar with Adorno will find important discussion of some of the more controversial ideas and themes in his work. The book should be of interest to scholars and upper-level students of philosophy, sociology, literature, communications and cultural studies.

Reviews

Deborah Cook's study of Adorno and mass culture critically engages one of the most important thinkers of our century. An excellent job in presenting Adorno's complex thought applied to a wide range of issues in contemporary social theory and media criticism. -- Douglas Kellner, UCLA; author of Media Culture and Media Spectacle and the Crisis of Democracy
In sum, the book is a refreshing departure from the frequent tendency to bash and dismiss Adorno without further ado, or the tendency of his followers to simply celebrate him as the greatest theorist of the contemporary moment. Cook's book should thus be of significant use to those interested in Adorno and critical theory, cultural studies and mass communication, and contemporary social theory. Adorno's work itself is transdisciplinary and Cook presents him in a fashion in which he could be of use to a broad transdisciplinary audience * Journal of Communication *
Adorno's speculative thinking in the service of norms such as freedom, autonomy, and spontaneity serves as a prototype of social and political practice that might overcome the reification and narcissism endemic to contemporary mass culture. * Sociological Abstracts *

Author Bio

Deborah Cook is associate professor of philosophy at the University of Windsor and the author of The Subject Finds a Voice: Foucault's Turn Towards Subjectivity (1993).