Praxis in progress: On the transformations of Kosík’s thought

Tava, Francesco

Abstract

One of the pivotal issues in the thought of Karel Kosík is that of praxis. Although various interpreters have recognised the centrality of this notion and identified its affinity with other theories of praxis drawn from the traditions of Marxism and Critical Theory, an examination of the overall meaning of praxis in Kosík’s output is still missing. This chapter aims at filling this gap by looking at three different stages of Kosík’s reflection. First, I will clarify the meaning and function of the idea of praxis, as well as its relationship with the concepts of theory and labour, in Dialectics of the Concrete (1963). I will then address Kosík’s subsequent works until the failure of the Prague Spring (1964–69), in order to understand how his interpretation of praxis evolved throughout these crucial years of intellectual and political turmoil. I will conclude with an analysis of Kosík’s late output (post-1989) that will reveal both the elements of continuity and the radical transformations that his reflection underwent.

• Online Publication Date: Dec 1, 2021
• Publication Date: Dec 1, 2021
• Deposit Date: Dec 27, 2021
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 3, 2024
• Publisher: Brill Academic Publishers
• Pages: 57-74
• Series Title: Historical Materialism Book Series
• Series Number: 243
• Series ISSN: 1570-1522
• Book Title: Karl Kosík and the Dialectics of the Concrete
• Chapter Number: 3
• ISBN: 9789004325364
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004503243_005
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/8442106
• Publisher URL: https://brill.com/view/book/9789004503243/BP000004.xml?fbclid=IwAR1F4mX5qUg9L5abQpr_vnTeQ5nb97xJqf4lyCJC82OyBAmzrb_vCI3Pu_g
• Contract Date: Apr 4, 2021