Sartre and Adorno on Freedom and Praxis A Study on Transcendence and Revolution

This dissertation seeks to compare and contrast two key concepts from the philosophies of Jean-Paul Sartre and Theodor Adorno, namely, freedom and praxis. The essence of this investigation is to establish a dialogue between the two philosophers, who are usually seen as irrelevant, using the concept of freedom. This is because despite the gulf between their philosophies, there are striking similarities between the two on the state of unfreedom and on the need for a revolutionary praxis. On the other hand, even as we look at the differences between the two, such as the ontology of freedom and whether praxis is still possible, we can still find possible dual-mediation and synthesis between them and thereby gaining new insights and perspectives. On top of that, we will also look at Adorno’s critiques on existentialism, especially on Kierkegaard, and argue if these critiques are also applicable to Sartre. The first part of this dissertation seeks to provide an exposition on the ontologies and historical consciousnesses of freedom of Sartre and Adorno separately. I will first elaborate why is it that, for Sartre, the human being, the being-for-itself, is a being of freedom. This is due to the fact that nothingness is an inherent characteristic of the for-itself, and this nothingness means that the for-itself is a being of possibility, who is able to set its own projects. I will also show that for Adorno, the idea of addendum is his metaphysical foundation for freedom and why this addendum needs education to be nurtured. I will also show, using historical examples, that to Sartre, freedom is supposed to be positive, whereas for Adorno, freedom is negative. This dissertation will take a closer look at Adorno’s critiques on Kierkegaard (and by extension, critiques on Sartre). I will argue that if we look only at the face values of Adorno’s critiques, these critiques do not apply to Sartre; yet if we look at the deeper concerns of Adorno, then it is up to us to defend Sartre and show that his brand of existentialism could address these concerns from Adorno. In this dissertation, we will also see that through the dialogue on freedom, there can be dual-mediation between the two philosophies on the issue of freedom. I will argue that a revolutionary praxis is still possible in this time and age, but the individual freedom of every member in the praxis groups must be respected and safeguarded. Finally, we will discuss further questions that are deviated from this dissertation, such as how shall freedom be achieved, and what is the nature of freedom.