Is Georg Lukacs' Critique Of Neo-Kantianism Justified?

A recurrent theme in the work of Georg Lukacs is a critique of the prevailing currents of sociological theory and method of his time. For Lukacs, Marxism provided a theory of society that surpassed social theory modeled on the neo-Kantian distinction between facts and value. Several scholars have argued that Lukacs’ commitment to Marxism blinded him to the contributions made by other social scientific approaches. In effect, Lukacs is charged with dismissing all other social scientific approaches on the basis of his alleged dogmatic Marxism. Moreover, Lukacs is accused of identifying any non-Marxian approach to social science as reactionary. This paper revisits Lukacs’ critique of social theory as well as the ways it has been dismissed. In this paper, I wish to argue that the nature of Lukacs’ critique has been misinterpreted and warrants renewed consideration. Reexamining Lukacs’ critique of neo-Kantianism reopens debates over claims that Lukacs’ notion that prevailing currents of social theory overlook the problems of alienation and reification.