<Theofragen>

Some tend to skip over introductions when reading a text. I myself have often been guilty of this. However, I have come to realize how imporant it is to read philosophers along side good introductions to what they mean.

For example:
Metaphysics, for Hegel, is not about God, religion or the supernatural. Rather, it’s about the absolute, following Spinoza’s notion (absolute=the infinite substance=the universe). It is a naturalistic notion. With Schelling, Hegel contended that the absolute is independent of essence and existence and it’s organic. Contra Schelling, he argued that the absolute is the whole of substance + its modes (unity of infinite and finite). His metaphysics is a “vitalistic materialism.”
“Spirit” = the highest degree of organization and development of the organic powers within nature. God=the absolute=the whole of nature. Kant denies and Hegel affirms that we can know that nature is an organism
• the Truth is the whole for Hegel
• “Science”= fully developed truth
• Begininng of philosophy only makes sense as a place holder, a place to start and then to discard
• “Reason”=the concrete universal [Verunft (reason) is contrasted with Verstand (abstract reason)]
• Geist=the Notion=Concept (Begriff)=Absolute Idea=absolute freedom=goal to which everything tends.
• “Truth, aware of what it is is Spirit.”
• “Spirit, when it is aware of what it is, is Science." (Wissenschaft)
• “Genuineness”=the correspondence of a thing with itself, of its being or objectivity with its notion

So, when reading a philosopher, like Hegel, one cannot simply wade into the turbid waters of his thought and hope to understand. Philosophers, if they are anything, are nuanced thinkers. They play with language (and when the language is in translation this problem is exacerbated) in the attempt to describe the thing in itself (die Sache selbst). So find good introductions and read them carefully if you want to have a hope of understanding someone like Hegel. Peace.

On Good Introductions

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