Agnes Heller Biography: Husband, Children, Parents, Books, Age, Wikipedia, Death, Net Worth

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Ágnes Heller was a prominent Hungarian philosopher and educator, known for her significant contributions to political theory and social philosophy.

A core member of the Budapest School in the 1960s, she played a key role in the development of Marxist humanism and was involved in shaping the intellectual environment of her time.

Later, Heller taught political theory for 25 years at the New School for Social Research in New York City. Throughout her career, she explored various areas, including aesthetics, social theory, and political philosophy.

Profile

• Full Name: Agnes Heller
• Stage Name: Agnes Heller
• Born: May 12, 1929
• Death date: 19 July 2019
• Age: 90 years old
• Birthplace: Budapest, Hungary
• Nationality: Hungarian
• Occupation: Hungarian philosopher and lecturer
• Height: Unknown
• Parents: Angyalka Heller and Pál Heller
• Siblings: Unknown
• Spouse: Ferenc Fehér (m. 1963–1994), István Hermann (m. 1949–1962)
• Children: Zsuzsa Hermann and György Fehér
• Relationship: Married
• Net Worth: Unknown

Early Life And Education

Ágnes Heller was born on May 12, 1929, in Budapest, Hungary, into a middle-class Jewish family. Her parents were Pál Heller and Angéla “Angyalka” Ligeti. During World War II, her father, Pál, was deported to Auschwitz, where he tragically perished.

While it is unclear if she had siblings, their names remain unknown to the media. Heller pursued studies in philosophy and Hungarian at the University of Budapest, where she was significantly influenced by philosopher György Lukács, becoming one of his closest aides. She was of Hungarian ethnicity and practiced Christianity.

Career

Ágnes Heller began her academic career in the early 1960s, having earned a doctorate in philosophy after World War II. Following the rise of Imre Nagy as Prime Minister in 1953, Heller was able to pursue her studies under the guidance of Georg Lukács.

She started teaching at the University of Budapest in 1955, but the 1956 Hungarian Revolution deeply influenced her thinking. The uprising solidified her belief that Marxism, when applied, should prioritize political autonomy and collective social life. Heller saw the revolution as proof that Marxism could be tailored to the needs of individual nations, challenging Soviet influence in Hungary’s future.

After the revolution, Heller found herself at odds with the new Soviet-backed government of János Kádár, particularly after she refused to denounce Lukács for his involvement in the uprising. This resulted in her expulsion from the Communist Party and dismissal from her university position in 1958.

She resumed her work in 1963 when she joined the Sociological Institute at the Hungarian Academy. Around this time, the “Budapest School” emerged, a philosophical movement led by Lukács to renew Marxist criticism. Heller, alongside her second husband Ferenc Fehér, and others, began focusing on themes like liberation theory, social change, and the everyday life of individuals.

The Budapest School initially supported reformist socialism, but the 1968 Prague Spring, which was violently suppressed by Warsaw Pact forces, led Heller and her colleagues to conclude that Eastern European regimes were deeply corrupt.

This shift in perspective set Heller in direct opposition to Kádár’s vision for Hungary. In an interview in 2010, Heller also described the post-1956 political and criminal processes as antisemitic.

Following Lukács’ death in 1971, members of the Budapest School faced increased political persecution. Heller and Fehér left Hungary for Australia, where they contributed to the founding of Thesis Eleven, an influential Australian journal of social theory.

In 1986, they moved to New York, where Heller joined The New School, later becoming the Hannah Arendt Professor of Philosophy in the Graduate Studies Program.

Throughout her career, Heller was recognized for her extensive research and publications on a wide range of topics, including ethics, aesthetics, political theory, and modernity. She also focused on the role of Central Europe in historical events. Her later works, such as The Concept of The Beautiful (1998) and Immortal Comedy (2005), showed her deepening interest in aesthetics.

Heller received numerous prestigious awards, including the Hannah Arendt Prize for Political Philosophy in 1995 and the Sonning Prize in 2006. In 2010, she was awarded the Goethe Medal and, in 2014, the Wallenberg Medal. She was also active in political causes, such as supporting a female quota in the Hungarian legislature.

In addition to her academic influence, Heller’s works were widely studied and revered by scholars worldwide. Her publications, such as A Theory of Feelings, The Concept of the Beautiful, and A Short History of My Philosophy, continue to have a lasting impact on philosophy.

She was a professor emeritus at The New School and continued to lecture globally, speaking at venues like the Imre Kertész College in Germany and the Tübingen Book Fair.

Social Media

Agnes Heller does not have any active social media accounts.

Personal Life

Ágnes Heller had two significant marriages. Her first marriage was to philosopher István Hermann in 1949, with whom she had a daughter, Zsuzsanna, before divorcing in 1962.

In 1963, she married philosopher Ferenc Fehér, and together they had a son, György, born in 1964. Heller and Fehér remained married until his death in 1994. Throughout her life, Heller was renowned for her critical political thought and philosophical contributions.

Net Worth

Ágnes Heller, the renowned Hungarian philosopher, passed away in 2019. While her extensive contributions to philosophy, particularly in Marxism and political theory, were widely recognized, there is no publicly available information regarding her net worth at the time of her death.

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