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Unit 10: George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

fact remained that “far from genuinely marking an end of history, Hegel’s thesis was itself a Notes
key expression of the history of his time and place”. Though Hegel himself said as a matter
of general rule that “all philosophy is its own time apprehended in thought”, his own effort
was no exception.
• Hegel’s political philosophy was contained in his Philosophy of Right. In his earlier writings
he tried to establish a correlation between classical philosophical tradition, particularly the
legacy of Kant and Fichte, and the changing scenario that became imminent with the French
Revolution. “Hegelian political philosophy goes beyond the idealism of Kant and of Fichte to
embody an historical, evolutionary doctrine which transforms the will into an aspect of pure
abstract intelligence”.
• In an unpublished essay, The German Constitution (1801), Hegel attempted to delineate a
workable definition of the state in order to counter the radicalism of the French revolutionary
wars and the traditional political system in Germany. In the Phenomenology of Spirit, he
evoked the Greek polis as the symbol of political cohesion and compactness, and at the same
time expressed his doubts about its realization in the modern world based on subjectivity. In
his Science of Logic and Encyclopedia, Hegel gave us a systematic exposition of the method of
dialectics, and integrated it with his political philosophy as outlined in the Philosophy of
Right.
• Hegel rejected the instrumentalist conception of the state as a political community for the
promotion and protection of individual aspirations and ambitions. The state therefore “was
no utilitarian institution, engaged in the commonplace business of providing public services,
administering the law, performing public duties and adjusting industrial and economic
interests” (Sabine 1973 : 641). The state safeguarded subjective freedom, the hallmark of
modern society, but it was an ethical entity whose objectives and goals were rooted in
interpersonal relationships that transcended individual wishes and caprice. However, the
Hegelian state did not permit individual judgement or choice. It emphasized obedience.
“Hegel failed to make clear a belief that the modern state does protect the right of choice. The
effect of Hegelian theory emerging in authoritarian systems has been to reaffirm the expressed
belief that individual choice is caprice and sentimentality”.
• The Philosophy of Right did not discuss certain important components of the modern political
system, like political parties or pressure groups. Though essentially anti-democratic, Hegel
placed considerable emphasis on public opinion and advocated limited freedom of the press.
The theory did not provide a definite doctrine of political obligation.
• The basic problem with Hegel’s liberalism was that it was ambiguous and placed a great deal
of emphasis on the state. This could be attributed to the fact that liberal institutions did not
exist in the Germany of his time. Moreover, liberalism as a creed and way of life was essentially
English in character and outlook. However, Hegel was not an enemy of liberalism, for he
emphatically defended the idea of freedom. “The connection between freedom and the other
virtues is emphasized by Hegel as by no other author”. He rejected the conception of
freedom as absence of restraints as being abstract, for it lacked substance. The primacy of
individual preference detached from other factors normally took shape in uncommon
situations, and as such that kind of freedom could not be considered genuine freedom. He
recognized the incompleteness and weakness of atomistic liberal individualism, and sought
to replace it with one where society was the overall framework for the realization of individual
freedom and autonomy. Unlike the thinkers of the Anglo-Saxon world who emphasized
liberty and individuality, Hegel stressed freedom and rationality. In obeying the state, the
individual was acting freely and rationally. Hegel was too authoritarian to be a liberal, and
too liberal to be authoritarian.

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