The aim of this study is to construct a methodological path starting from, and moving beyond, Marx's thought. At attempt is undertaken to reassess the crucial issue of a critique of political economy in a time such as ours, when economic theory rules all-powerful and has convinced almost everyone that it is merely a neutral language. How, then, can we recapture Marx's project of a critical political economy? Through a dialogue with the Frankfurt School (especially Horkheimer) and with contemporary economics as well as with cognitivist approaches, I suggest a model of "critical instrumental rationality", which relocates Marxian concerns without in any way minimizing them. Marx's critique thus becomes one theory among others within a model of economic interaction, which, nevertheless, continues to be aimed at Marx's own critical goal: that of a "we" of critical individuals seeking a fully emancipated society.
Arnsperger, C. (2004). Comment renouveler la critique de l’économie politique? Une démarche “pro-constructive” au delà de Marx. Revue Philosophique de Louvain, 102(2), 259-283. https://doi.org/10.2143/RPL.102.2.504544 (Original work published 2004)