From language to art: A Marcusian approach to critical social work pedagogy

This chapter outlines Herbert Marcuse’s political thought, and his ideas about the hidden means of oppression that operate within society, hindering individuals’ ability to develop a critical consciousness. In line with Marcuse’s theory, the chapter discusses several questions that are fundamental to his thinking: What is an uncritical language? How is oppression disguised as liberation in an affluent society? What is a “happy consciousness” and how is it learned, promoted, and indoctrinated on a large scale? What is the role of dialectics and negative thinking in deciphering society’s means of domination and developing radical alternatives to the status quo? How can art and the aesthetic dimension become a force of resistance and a way to elevate critical thinking? This discussion traces different facets of what Marcuse identified as “the Great Refusal,” a state of radical consciousness and uncompromising resistance. Marcuse’s theory is followed by suggestions for pedagogical practices that could be implemented in social work education. These practices are discussed with relation to their potential to unsettle, trouble, and subvert the dominant “one-dimensional” non-critical ideologies of both teacher and student.