Marx & Heidegger

This doctoral dissertation in philosophy at Northwestern University considers the two most important philosophers of the modern age. I conducted my research during three years in Germany: at Heidelberg where Heidegger's work was continued and at Frankfurt where critical theory extended Marx' thinking. In recent years I have applied conceptual and methodological perspectives from Marx and Heidegger to the theory of CSCL. In particular Marx countered the ideology of individualism by analyzing social structures and interpersonal interactions at different units of analysis than the individual person. Heidegger also questioned the traditional ontology of natural objects with innate attributes by proposing dynamic interactive processes of beings in their ecological context. Today the philosophies of Marx and Heidegger are still extremely relevant-provided one adapts them to the current socio-historical context and adjusts each to the implicit criticisms of the other.