Hentrup, Miles, 1984-2010-08-252010-08-252010-06https://hdl.handle.net/1794/10640viii, 83 p. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number.My thesis begins by acknowledging the fact that our time is marked by crisis. Although this seems, to most, undeniable, I argue that because we lack the criterion for legitimating this claim, appeals to crisis are always susceptible to ideological appropriation and misuse. Hence, the thesis strives to articulate a space of critical reflection in which the legitimate diagnosis of crises may be possible. To this end, I turn to the tradition of continental philosophy, appraising the efforts of Karl Marx, Jurgen Habermas, and Jacques Derrida. While each of these thinkers offers a unique critique of crisis, I argue that they nevertheless succumb to what I call "crisis consciousness" - a condition in which the perception of crisis is inseparable from that of powerlessness.en-USCrises (Philosophy)Thesis