Traditional Theory

• Theory is something that is discovered/unveiled. Not Created
• Goal: To create a universal systematic science (which encompasses all forms of knowledge).
• Theory must not be in contradiction with experience. It must reflect our experiences. Examined based on the experience of individuals.
• This leads to a kind of theory that is instrumentalized and benefits the bourgeois class.
• Marxist critique argues that traditional theories are limited because they do not consider the historical or political context in which ideas were developed.
• They also suggest that these theories tend to focus on individual thinkers rather than considering broader societal factors.
• In contrast, Marxism emphasizes the importance of understanding the historical and political context in which ideas develop, recognizing the role of power relations and ideology in shaping knowledge production.
• Marxists argue that this approach can lead to theoretical frameworks that are detached from reality and fail to address real-world problems.
• Marxists criticize traditional theories for being too narrowly focused on specific disciplines and failing to recognize interdisciplinary connections between different fields of knowledge.
• Theory and Reason have been instrumentalized/capitalized.
• Traditional theory becomes a description of society (as it is)—sustenance of the status quo.
• Only creates a binary between theory and practice (experience).
• Traditional theory assumes that there is an objective truth out there waiting to be discovered by scientists.
• Theory is seen as an absolute/unchangeable (it is there, we just have to discover it).
• Role of the SUBJECT: Passive receiver/only awaits the theory to explain the reality.
• They see reality as separate from theory.
• Savants see themselves as not part of what they study.
• "Exposition of state of affairs in reality" (which benefits the industry).
• The reality that subjects see is only a sequence of facts (unchangeable).
• Traditional theory is disinterested. Does not represent the interest of the larger mass.
• Traditional theories do not take into account the interests of the people being studied.
• Traditional theory assumes that there are no other ways to know things besides through observation, experimentation, and deduction.