Complete Correspondence 1928 - 1940

Theodor W. Adorno (1903-1969) and Walter Benjamin (1892-1940) were prominent members of the Frankfurt School, and among the most influential thinkers of the twentieth century in the areas of social theory, philosophy, literary criticism and aesthetics.

"[In this volume] the reader witnesses the hesitant, tension-filled process by which two individuals come together – individuals who could scarcely have approached each other in any other way than through the mediation of this literary form." Jürgen Habermas, Die Zeit "The extraordinary and unique qualities of this correspondence stem from the confrontation in stages between two of the most intense and energetic minds of the last century." Fredric Jameson, Duke University "To reconsider the relationship between Theodor Adorno and Walter Benjamin is to reflect on one of the most enduring philosophical friendships of the twentieth century." Richard Wolin, New Republic "The first time the letters of these two great minds have been published in their entirety makes for endlessly crunchy reading that combines high-octane intellectual jousting with a touching arm’s-length friendship and, towards the end, a personal tragedy, as Benjamin’s situation gets inexorably worse. The sinewy dialogues on various topics – music, painting, poetry, Adorno’s theory of dialecticism, Benjamin’s aesthetics – throw up constant insights into how their major ideas were formed, as it were, out of live, fluid thinking." Steven Poole, The Guardian