Moral Imagination and Adorno: Before and After Auschwitz

247 Pages·2016·1.81 MB·English

Marquette University
e-Publications@Marquette
Dissertations (2009 -) Dissertations, Theses, and Professional Projects
Moral Imagination and Adorno: Before and After
Auschwitz
Catlyn Origitano
Marquette University
Recommended Citation
Origitano, Catlyn, "Moral Imagination and Adorno: Before and After Auschwitz" (2016).Dissertations (2009 -).Paper 656.
http://epublications.marquette.edu/dissertations_mu/656
MORAL IMAGINATION AND ADORNO: BEFORE AND AFTER AUSCHWITZ

by

Catlyn Origitano, B.A, M.A

A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School,
Marquette University
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for
the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

August 2016
ABSTRACT
MORAL IMAGINATION AND ADORNO: BEFORE AND AFTER AUSCHWITZ

Catlyn Origitano, B.A., M.A

Marquette University, 2016

In the aftermath of national or international tragedies, appeals for action such as,
“Never Forget” or “Never Again” are ubiquitous. Theodor Adorno makes a similar call in
the wake of the Holocaust, proclaiming that all education should be focused on the
prevention of another genocide. While most would agree with such a statement,
practically how do we respond to such a call, specifically in light of Adorno’s work?
Answering this question is at the heart of this project and I argue that imaginative
memorials can fulfill Adorno’s criteria for post-Auschwitz education.
I first present a theory of moral imagination by relying on contemporary accounts
of the theory and then show how it complements Adorno’s work, specifically by offering
an explanatory foundation to a number of his claims. I reveal that many of Adorno’s
observations about the world are supported by recent advancements in the understanding
of imagination and I argue that the combination of contemporary accounts of moral
imagination and Adorno’s thought are mutually beneficial.
After the two theories have been sufficiently discussed and integrated, I focus on
Adorno’s arguments regarding education following Auschwitz. Adorno argues that we
should investigate how such a horror could occur, and the people who committed the acts
of genocide. Such information will be helpful for the prevention of another Auschwitz
because we can attempt to overcome the values and ideas of those who perpetrated
genocide.
This dissertation is unique and of philosophical importance because it fleshes out
Adorno’s discussion of the characteristics that led to the Holocaust and argues for a
specific form of education that meets all of the criteria of Adorno’s post-Auschwitz
education: memorials that stimulate the visitor’s imagination. In order to make this point,
I highlight specific Holocaust memorials that are imaginative and argue for their efficacy.
My goal for the project is to actualize Adorno’s post-Auschwitz education initiative
through imaginative memorials.
i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Catlyn Origitano, M.A., B.A.

I would like to thank my mom and dad for inspiring me to pursue and complete
my PhD. I would also like to thank my committee members: Drs. James South, Kevin
Gibson, Susanne Foster, and Theresa Tobin; their constant support and guidance have
been crucial to any success I’ve enjoyed. Thank you to my all colleagues, including:
Daniel Vecchio, Shaun Miller, Jered Janes, Daniel Farmer, and Matthew Nowachek.
Thank you Melissa Shew, Andrew Cutrofello, Dottie Rossitano, and especially Trevor
Smith and Lee Wagner for all of your support and guidance. Thanks to Marquette
University, as well as the Smith Family for supporting my research. Thank you to my
Hines, Origitano, Drubel, and Proust families.
Finally, and most of all, to Matthew Ross who has been the constant encourager,
editor, cheerleader, rock, and everything else that was necessary for this project to
succeed. This dissertation is dedicated to you.
ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................................. i
LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................ iv
INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................... 1
Chapter Outline ............................................................................................... 4
A CONTEMPORARY ACCOUNT OF MORAL IMAGINATION ......................................... 10
Mark Johnson and Moral Imagination .......................................................... 11
The Activities of Moral Imagination ............................................................. 15
The Importance of Moral Imagination .......................................................... 25
Patricia Werhane and Moral Imagination ..................................................... 30
Martha Nussbaum and Moral Imagination .................................................... 36
Johnson, Werhane, and Nussbaum Connected .............................................. 44
Moral Education Through Narratives ............................................................ 51
MORAL IMAGINATION AND ADORNO ............................................................................. 62
Enlightenment ............................................................................................... 62
Instrumental Reason ...................................................................................... 70
Identity and Nonidentity Thinking ................................................................ 74
Constellations ................................................................................................ 83
Barter and Accounting Language .................................................................. 95
Adorno on Imagination ................................................................................. 98
Moral Imagination and Adorno Connected ................................................. 106
A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF ‘EDUCATION AFTER AUSCHWITZ’ ............................... 113
Collective Thinking ..................................................................................... 124
Hardness and Coldness ................................................................................ 135
iii
The Veil of Technology .............................................................................. 149
Barbarization of the Countryside ................................................................ 155
Avoidance.................................................................................................... 157
IMAGINING ADORNO’S ‘EDUCATION AFTER AUSCHWITZ’ ..................................... 161
An Imaginative Education ........................................................................... 162
Exemplars .................................................................................................... 167
Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory .............................................................. 169
Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe ................................................. 184
Stopersten/Stumbling Block ........................................................................ 191
A Necessary Change in Education .............................................................. 202
Mechanisms of Prejudice ............................................................................ 214
Potential Criticisms ..................................................................................... 220
CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................ 229
Contributions to the Literature .................................................................... 230
Limitations and Further Research ............................................................... 231
BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................................ 234
iv
LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Adorno's Complex Concept. Created by author. ............................................... 78

Figure 2. Water Constellation. Created by author. ........................................................... 86

Figure 3. "Müncher Illustrietre Presse." Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial. Photo by
author, 2014. ................................................................................................................... 125

Figure 4. Documentation Center Nazi Rally Party Grounds. Photo by author, 2014. .... 144

Figure 5. Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory. Expedia, 2015. ........................................ 170

Figure 6. Ghetto Ceiling and Wall in Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory. Photo by author,
2014................................................................................................................................. 171

Figure 7. Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory. Expedia. 2015. ........................................ 172

Figure 8. Two books, one says "Righteous" in Polish and the other "Traitorous" in the
Hall of Choices. Photo by author, 2014. ......................................................................... 176

Figure 9. Oskar Schindler’s Factory Photo: Hall of Choices. Tripadvisor, 2014. .......... 177

Figure 10. Field of Stelae of the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. Photo by
author, 2014. ................................................................................................................... 184

Figure 11. Inside the Field of Stelae of the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.
Photo by author, 2014. .................................................................................................... 185

Figure 12. Information Center.Room of Families. Siftung-denkmal.de, 2014. .............. 186

Figure 13. Stumbling Blocks. Berlin. Photo by author, 2014. ........................................ 191

Figure 14. Stumbling Blocks. Berlin. Photo by author, 2014. ........................................ 192
1
INTRODUCTION

Imagination has had a rollercoaster relationship with Western philosophy. At its
zenith, it is credited with the creation of artwork; at its nadir, it’s a faculty of delusion,
leading us astray from truth and reason. When it comes to ethics, imagination has only
recently come onto the scene.1 For most of the history of Western Philosophy, rational
measurements in the form of golden means or hedonic calculations have been the
methods of choice for determining the best moral action.
Recently, within the latter half of the century, imagination has begun to grow in
importance as the study of it, especially within ‘hard sciences,’ develops. Cognitive
science and neuroscience have begun to focus on imagination’s role in our moral lives
and philosophy is, fortunately, joining in the conversation. This project is meant to add to
the ever-growing ranks of academics championing imagination’s role in our lives.
Though I think that imagination is present and required in most of our cognitive
activities, in this project I am going to focus primarily on imagination’s role in morality,
most often referred to as moral imagination.
While I explore the major contemporary theories of moral imagination, I also
extend them to Critical Theorist Theodor Adorno, specifically his work on education
after Auschwitz. I look to integrate the two theories in order to realize Adorno’s project
of an education that combats the features that led to Auschwitz.

1 At least explicitly—it can be argued that imagination has always been discussed in connection
with ethics, even if not named. For instance, contemplating the mean between excess and
deficiency requires holding two possibilities in the mind and comparing them. Such activities
seem to rely heavily on imagination as we know it.
2
An aim of my research is to establish a clarified and unified understanding of
moral imagination, merging contemporary accounts and focusing primarily on
imagination’s role in moral deliberation and perception. From there, my objective is to
unite the theory with Adorno’s, revealing how the two are mutually beneficial, as well as
compatible. The ultimate aim of the project is to offer a possibility for education post
Auschwitz. In particular, I suggest that certain imaginative memorials and museums can
have a powerful impact on their visitors in such a way that the museums can possibly
prepare visitors for future, similar experiences. By using data on the efficacy of
imagination, as well as Adorno’s work on the causes of the Holocaust, I offer an
education that weds the two, as well as concrete examples of museums that utilize the
education I discuss. Ultimately, then, my project will contribute to a body of literature on
genocide education in a unique way by focusing on the role of imagination therein.
I was initially drawn to the topic of moral imagination through imagination itself.
My early interest in philosophy was in aesthetics (and certainly such an interest remains).
In most aesthetic theories, imagination is hailed as an important and necessary
component to the creation of artworks and the appreciation of those works. Imagination
was often touted as the ‘lawless’ feature that allowed for creativity and for those feelings
of awe in front of artworks. It was here that I first became interested in imagination, but
such an interest was not completely fleshed out until I moved out of aesthetics and
studied in greater depth the history of philosophy. Here I saw my favorite faculty dragged
through the mud. Not only that, but it seemed that many of the descriptions of the mental
faculties, or activities that philosophers praised, were impossible without some of the
features of imagination; if the faculty wasn’t being criticized, its role was being denied.
3
It was this rejection that led me to study the role of imagination throughout the
history of philosophy, and ultimately to moral imagination: the role of imagination in our
moral lives. I was drawn to this specific area because, more than ever, imagination seems
fundamental to our moral activities. Insofar as morality plays an integral role in our
everyday lives, I thought it was important to investigate imagination’s role therein. It
wasn’t until Dr. James South, my advisor, introduced me to Theodor Adorno that the
other piece to the puzzle fell into place.
Adorno’s work provides a solid framework within which moral imagination fits.
His critique of reason offers a good place to suggest the benefits of moral imagination.
His critiques of society, in particular the way, in which he blends psychoanalysis, and
Marxist work, serve as a great place for imagination to lend its voice.
Further, his work focused on the Holocaust brings moral imagination into a place
where it can have a real impact: an education post-Holocaust that addresses the
conditions that led to it and attempt to counteract them. I have for a long time, like many,
been fascinated by the Holocaust. It is an event that captivates many as it seems to defy
comprehensibility. How could so many die and so few do anything to stop it? How could
so many camps be built, and so much horror take place? I wanted to add to the large body
of work on the Holocaust in a way that both looks back to understand, but also forward to
move ahead. Further, introducing and incorporating imagination into the picture provides
unique insights into what happened and what can happen: many people say that the
Holocaust is ‘unimaginable’ but it wasn’t, it was imagined, and it took place.
Discussing imagination in terms of understanding what happened, as well as tools
for education post-genocide, seems an interesting and necessary direction for my project.