The Pendulum of Meaning

As countless ongoing debates in modern philosophy and social theory testify most discussions in both the analytic and Continental traditions involve a direct or indirect allusion to the concept of meaning; yet “meaning” remains largely undeciphered. The book tackles this problem through an investigation of Theodor W. Adorno’s negative dialectics construed as an intricate meta-critique of knowledge. This appraisal which exposes an unexplored aspect of his thought namely a triple nexus between “concept” “truth” and “meaning” sheds new light on a fundamental dilemma concerning the nature of conceptuality and the possibility of gaining true knowledge. The book addresses a broad range of scholars across disciplines in the humanities. It is well-suited for advanced (postgraduate) students and researchers who seek a close reading and explication of Adorno’s ideas presented through clear argumentation in a language accessible to all readers and for anyone interested in the complicated yet pertinent question to the social sciences: what is meaning?