Herbert Marcuse's synthesis of Freud and Marx — arguing that civilization's repression of Eros (sexuality/pleasure) serves the interests of capitalism, and that sexual liberation is essential to genuine political liberation.
Freud + Marx synthesis: Marcuse accepts Freud's argument that civilization requires repression of instinctual drives (Eros and Thanatos) but rejects Freud's claim that this repression is necessary. Instead, Marcuse argues that contemporary capitalism requires 'surplus repression' — repression beyond what is minimally necessary for civilization — to maintain labor discipline and authority. The radical implication: sexual liberation and political liberation are the same project. This synthesis was enormously influential on the 1960s counterculture's combination of sexual and political radicalism.
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