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Thinkers turning to Hegel's philosophy for the sake of political action have always faced a seemingly irresolvable dilemma. In multiple statements throughout his works, Hegel makes it perfectly clear that philosophers cannot change the world. For Hegel, philosophy is politically impotent. For instance, in the final pages of the History of Philosophy, he proclaims, "The ultimate aim and interest of philosophy is to reconcile thought or the concept with actuality." 1 According to Hegel, philosophy should not try to change the world because it cannot. It always arrives too late on the scene to offer concrete political proposals. The name that Hegel gives for the reconciliation of thought with actuality is the absolute, which represents the fundamental barrier to seeing Hegel's philosophy as a political project. As the reconciliation of thought with the actual, the absolute demands that the philosopher give up the possibility of philosophy giving political advice. With the theorization of the absolute, Hegel seems unequivocally to attest to his allegiance to the ruling order. The political energy of his youth, including his investment in the politics of the French Revolution, appears t

Author

McGowan, Todd

Publisher

Columbia University Press

Published

2019

Language

EN