The introduction unfolds the background of the book in the post-1989 Western situation of collapsing actually existing socialism and the following crisis of the left—arguing against the grand narrative of the ‘end of history’. It demonstrates the connection between the financial crisis in 2008 and the return of Critical Marxist Theory and argues that the Frankfurt School should overcome its lack in analyses of political economy hegemonic in its development since the 1980s. After all, as the political movements on the left return to critiques of capitalism, so must Critical Theory if it does not wish to lose all its former substance on which its international fame was built. The introduction ends by sketching the structure of the book, its relevance and goal.