Drawing on classical Husserlian resources as well as existentialist and hermeneutical approaches, this book argues that critique is largely a question of method. It demonstrates that phenomenological discussions of acute social and political problems draw from a rich tradition of radically critical investigations in epistemology, social ontology, political theory, and ethics.

The contributions show that contemporary phenomenological investigations of various forms of oppression and domination develop new critical-analytical tools that complement those of competing theoretical approaches, such as analytics of power, critical theory, and liberal philosophy of justice. More specifically, the chapters pay close attention to the following methodological themes: the conditions for the possibility of phenomenology as critique; critique as radical reflection and free thinking; eidetic analysis and reflection of transcendental facticity and contingency of the self, of others, of the world; phenomenology and immanent critique; the self-reflective dimensions of phenomenology; and phenomenological analysis and self-transfermation and world transformation. All in all, the book explicates the multiple critical resources phenomenology has to offer, precisely in virtue of its distinctive methods and methodological commitments, and thus shows its power in tackling timely issues of social injustice.

Phenomenology as Critique: Why Method Matters will appeal to researchers and advanced students working in phenomenology, Continental philosophy, and critical theory.

About the Author

Andreea Smaranda Aldea is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Kent State University, USA.

David Carr is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Emory University, USA.

Sara Heinamaa is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Jyvaskyla, Finland.

Reviews

"The volume is a timely contribution with treasures in store for everyone from the verdant novice to the veteran phenomenological researcher . . . For anyone interested in classical phenomenology's critical resources, Phenomenology as Critique is required reading."

Phenomenological Reviews

Book Information
ISBN 9781032015118
Author Andreea Smaranda Aldea
Format Hardback
Page Count 284
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 453g