The critical theory of the Frankfurt School has undergone numerous and at times fundamental
changes over the last ninety years. Since the late 1960s it has been characterized primarily
by Jürgen Habermas's communicative turn and a focus on normative foundations. Today that
second generation exists side-by-side with a third generation represented most prominently by
Axel Honneth's turn toward recognition ethical life and the normative reconstruction of
social institutions. This volume brings together critical voices on the state and direction of
Frankfurt School theory today by examining Honneth's theory in light of both current challenges
and the intellectual and political ambitions that have shaped the tradition from its beginning.
United in their strong commitment to critical scholarship the authors collected here approach
Honneth's work from different backgrounds employ a wide variety of methodologies and write in
different genres ranging from the sober scholarly analysis to programmatic and political
appeals. The collective aim of these reflections is not to reject Honneth's theory but to build
upon his work and incorporate his themes of recognition and social freedom into a new project
of critical theory that can prove adequate to the political and social crises of our time.
