According to Karl Marx, democracy is the “resolved riddle of all constitutions.” However, it raises countless further questions. One of its central unresolved issues concerns the tension between the democratic norms of freedom, equality, and solidarity on the one hand, and capitalism on the other. While Critical Theory provides a robust analysis of the structural constraints on emancipation within capitalism, Radical Democratic Theory addresses this tension primarily by emphasizing the power of social struggles to democratize democracy.

This conference aims to explore the tension between capitalism, democracy, and emancipation, as well as the different ways in which Radical Democratic Theory and Critical Theory approach this issue. By doing so, it seeks to foster a productive dialogue between radical democratic and critical perspectives.

There will be Keynotes by Lea Prix (TU Dortmund) and Oliver Marchart (University of Vienna).

Please find the full Call for Abstracts here. You can either submit your abstract and a short biography by 20 January 2025 via the homepage or by email to valerie.scheibenpflug@univie.ac.at and julia.werthmann@univie.ac.at.

Organised by Valerie Scheibenpflug (University of Vienna) & Julia Werthmann (University of Vienna)

Workshop days: March 19–20, 2026 

Program: tba