In this timely new book Wellmer intervenes in the highly topical debates on modernity and post-modernity. Discussing the work of Adorno, Habermas, Peter Burger and Jean-Fran&ccedilois Lyotard, among others, he offers a penetrating analysis of the aesthetic, ethical and philosophical dimensions of the modern era. In opposition to those who view post-modernity as a sign of post-enlightenment, Wellmer makes a reasoned plea for a re-examination of the goals of emancipatory Enlightenment and explores its implications for the appreciation of modern art forms.

Albrecht Wellmer was previously Professor of Philosophy at the University of Konstanz. He is published well, including his English publication ofCritical Theory of Society.

Introduction.

1. Truth, Semblance, Reconciliation: Adorno's Aesthetic Redemption of Modernity.

2. The Dialectic of Modernism and Postmodernism: The Critique of Reason Since Adorno.