Financial starvation and conscription fear drove Marcuse toward government work

Evidence

In the autumn of 1942, the strategy of financial starvation applied by the directors of the Institute had succeeded to the extent that Marcuse felt compelled to find additional money somehow or other. Since Neumann saw definite opportunities both for him and for other Institute members in Washington in government jobs, and since Marcuse was afraid that because he was not employed on affairs connected with the war effort he might be conscripted, he travelled to Washington in the hope of finding a job that would enable him to earn his living in Santa Monica and at the same time carry on his collaboration with Horkheimer. — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School, 1241

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Salaried Institute intellectuals like Marcuse faced income insecurity even in exile — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 1227; Marcuse justified government war work by treating theory-practice unity as utopian — Martin Jay, The Dialectical Imagination: A History…, 297; Economic frustration after military service triggered scapegoating that moved him toward extremism — Ryan Andrew Brown, Todd C. Helmus, Rajeev Ramchand, Alina I. Palimaru, Sarah Weilant, Ashley L. Rhoades, and Liisa Hiatt (RAND Corporation), Violent Extremism in America:…, 305

Broader Connections

• Marcuse justified government war work by treating theory-practice unity as utopian #qualifies (0.75) — Martin Jay, The Dialectical Imagination, 297