The family in Critical Theory: Domination and utopia

Abstract

The family represents a key problem in modern political philosophy. In this article, I examine the key philosophical principles by which Critical Theory has sought to decipher the meaning of the family in capitalist society. Following in the foot steps of Hegel and Marx, this tradition approaches the study of the family through a dialectic critique of the ideology, proposing evidence of the family’s relevance to the reproduction of domination, as well as the latent utopian possibilities of family life