Herbert Marcuse and the West German Student Movement

There were only a few intellectuals that were as present in the years of the West German student rebellion around 1968 as Herbert Marcuse. It was not only that he was widely read and that his lectures were visited by thousands, but Marcuse sided again and again with the students. Hereby, he differentiates himself decisively from other representatives of the Frankfurt School like Habermas or Adorno. This solidarity results, as will be shown, from a profound accordance between his ideas and the experiences of the students in their practice and their thinking. The article traces the connections between Herbert Marcuse and the West German student movement, using the writings of two of its protagonists – Rudi Dutschke and Hans-Jürgen Krahl – as examples. We show that in their theoretical drafts as well as in their political-strategic proposals, there are numerous adaptations and advancements of Marcuse’s theorems. These include for example the thesis of “One-Dimensional Society,” the “Great Refusal” and “Repressive Tolerance.”