Horkheimer’s "Instrumentalized Reason Critical" Research

Horkheimer’s theory of social criticism is a supplement to Marx’s political economy,and it is the application of the principle of practical criticism in ideological criticism.Horkheimer criticized the instrumentalization of reason based on the dialectical philosophical method,starting from the system against metaphysics.On the one hand,he criticized idealism to talk about rationality in an abstract way out of the concrete historical context;on the other hand,he criticized materialism for mechanically treating rationality as an appendage of some material origin.Horkheimer’s method of "fighting on two fronts" against materialism and idealism established the general tone of the Frankfurt school’s critical theory.This kind of critique,which seems to conflict in content and form,is precisely the embodiment of its "open materialist dialectics".It can not only overcome the shortcomings of idealism and rational criticism of being divorced from reality,but also avoid the rigid nature of traditional Marxist materialism criticism."Reason was instrumentalized" was Horkheimer’s in-depth speculation on the Western rational tradition.Reason was swallowed up like the moon.He hoped to re-establish the authority and standard of reason.But nowadays the commonplace "instrumental reason" can not fully reflect Horkheimer’s thoughts.Horkheimer did not mention "instrumental reason".It was the "reason being instrumentalized" that led to "eclipse of reason".Through the three aspects of the social roots of the phenomenon of "instrumentalized reason",namely,the alienation of technology,the alienation of power,and the alienation of production,we have a further understanding of the enlightenment and limitations of the idea of "eclipse of reason"."Social criticism" transcends "rational criticism",and the treatment of the origin of rationality requires the use of rational tension to promote rational maturity."Social Criticism" can not do "Social Change",rational criticism is separated from political practice,rational criticism is out of touch with revolutionary subjects,and Horkheimer’s bourgeois origin is limited,that is,the contradiction between social criticism and cherishing individual freedom,which makes rational criticism unavoidable.Utopian castles in the sky are a departure from Marx’s historical materialism.Horkheimer made a negative critique of the "instrumentalized reason" based on the principle of non-identity,and absorbed the critical elements in Marx’s thought.Horkheimer’s "Social Critical Theory" in the sense of negation and criticism thought about how to penetrate the preconditions of capital logic and tried to find the power to sublate capital within capital.Horkheimer’s critical theory is not to seek a solution that is beneficial to a certain class,but to make the decision by reason itself.How does reason restore its independence and autonomy? It is a problem that needs to be solved,and it is the most vivid embodiment of the "contradiction between subject and object" that he is difficult to solve.