The Mediocrity and Magic of Modernity

Author: Liu Huaiyu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-03-29
Features: This book employs textual analysis methods to study the philosophical thought and developmental process of Henri Lefebvre, a modern French philosopher and founder of Western Marxism, particularly his critique of everyday life. For Lefebvre, "everyday life" differs qualitatively from "daily life" and "ordinariness." His early thought focused on the "everyday life" that has always existed but is filled with value and mystery, characterized by style. In contrast, his mid-to-late thought emphasized the critique of "daily life" as an alienation phenomenon in modern society and "ordinariness" as the mechanical repetitive rhythm of modernity. In his early works, he took a relatively philosophical and optimistic stance on daily life, believing that the alienated world of daily life encompasses both oppressed and liberating elements. However, in his later works, his understanding of daily life became more micro and sociological, and he grew relatively pessimistic. He argued that in developed capitalist societies, daily life is fully integrated into the overall process of production and consumption, transforming modern society into a "consumption-driven bureaucratic society" rather than a leisurely and prosperous society where people have free choices. The salvation of modernity can only be achieved through a cultural revolution centered on daily life. Lefebvre was not only the founder of Western Marxism but also an involuntary promoter of the so-called "post-Marxist thought" since the 1970s. In his later years, he transformed historical dialectics into what he called "spatialized ontology," essentially turning the "postmodern turn" of the "spatial law" of historical dialectics. Yet, until the very end of his life, he remained steadfast in his Marxist political faith and the fundamental tenets of Marxist philosophy.