CONTRADICTION, CRITIQUE, AND DIALECTIC IN ADORNO A ...

subjectivity, appearance and essence constitute the logical contradiction that arises
between the ordinary or positivist consciousness’s analysis of isolated elements, and the
theoretical consciousness’s analysis of all finite elements in terms of the social totality
that grounds their deep structure of intelligibility. The inconsistency that pervades both
objectivity and subjectivity just is Adorno’s “contradiction in the object.”
Social Reality
Subjectivity Objectivity
Appearance:
Ordinary
Consciousness
Relation of Contradiction
Essence:
Concept of the social
whole as ground of
intelligibility
Figure 4.1: Inner contradictory structure of social reality: Adorno’s
“contradiction in the object”.
The structure of the “contradiction in the object” arises because the sphere of
essence is essentially distortion-producing: the essence of social reality is only essence
by giving rise to a distorted appearance that in turn maintains the essence in place as
essence. And, in order for essence to maintain itself as essence, its distinction from
appearance must hold so that essence remains hidden behind appearance, so that it
remains protected from itself becoming appearance. In other words, the determination of
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Appearance:
“Facts” considered in
isolation from the concept
of society
Essence: Determination by
the social totality
(specifically by the
principle of exchange)