Universal History as Global Critique: From German Critical Theory to the Anti-Colonial Tradition
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Date
2021-09-13
Authors
Portella , Elizabeth
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Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
This dissertation argues for a critical reconstruction of the concept of universal history. In doing so, it draws on theoretical resources offered by a materialist philosophy of history, as it is expressed in both German critical theory (of the 19th and 20th centuries) and Afro-Caribbean, anti-colonial thought (of the 20th century). Proceeding through an examination of classical conceptual oppositions in the history of philosophy such as historical specificity versus transhistoricity, nature versus history, and universality versus particularly, the project also surveys tensions and limitations of the historical assumptions of the existing literature in social and political thought. The dissertation explores the possibility of global critique for the present which emphasizes a multi-traditional and multi-regional approach to historically situated, critical social theory. It is argued that between the resources of the Western Marxist tradition (including Hegel, Marx, as well as the Frankfurt and Budapest Schools of critical theory) and anti-colonial thought (esp. systemic, materialist critiques of colonialism and imperialism from the Afro-Caribbean), the concept of universal history can be critically reconstructed to ground critiques of an antagonistic and unequal global society.
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Keywords
anti-colonial theory, critical theory, decolonial thought, historical materialism, philosophy of history, postcolonial theory