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A Hegel Dictionary
This book provides a comprehensive survey of Hegel's philosophical thought via a systematic exploration of over 100 key terms, from `absolute' to `will'. By exploring both the etymological background of such terms and Hegel's particular use of them, Michael Inwood clarifies for the modern reader much that has been regarded as difficult and obscure in Hegel's work.
- GenresPhilosophyReference
368 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
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About the author
Michael J. Inwood
15 books16 followersMichael Inwood is an emeritus fellow and tutor of philosophy at Trinity College, Oxford.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 22, 2024
"La nécessité de constituer un Hegel-Lexicon est patente." - A. Koyré
If you're thinking about getting this book as an aid to reading Hegel, do yourself a favor and get it. I picked it up while reading Science of Logic, and I wish I had had it when I was reading Phenomenology of Spirit - it is incredibly useful, bordering on essential.
This work includes detailed explanations of several dozen of Hegel's key terms. For each, Inwood reviews the etymology of the German source term, its colloquial definition, its usage history in philosophy, and a detailed review and analysis of how Hegel uses the term, with citations to the relevant works.
For me, the review of the philosophical meaning of the terms is nearly as useful as the explanation of Hegel's specific usage. Hegel presupposes a vast knowledge of philosophy, and when looking up a term like "the Understanding," for example, it's enormously helpful to get a mini-review of how the term was used by Leibniz, Wolff, and Kant, before diving into Hegel's take.
Nearly every term I've looked up during my reading has been included, either with a full entry or as part of another entry. Pretty much every term you would expect to find is here: absolute, reflection, concept, idea, spirit, measure, sublation, infinity, immediate, and so forth. Some entries resemble mini-surveys of some of Hegel's main ideas, such as "Art, Beauty, and Aesthetics" or "Religion, Theology and Philosophy of Religion."
One minor criticism: I do not think it is appropriate to characterize Hegel's philosophy as a priori, as Inwood sometimes does. The very notion of the a priori is only coherent within a Kantian subject/object framework that Hegel clearly rejects and frequently criticizes. I do not believe Hegel himself ever applied that term to his own thought.
For anyone working their way through Hegel's work, I enthusiastically recommend this work.
If you're thinking about getting this book as an aid to reading Hegel, do yourself a favor and get it. I picked it up while reading Science of Logic, and I wish I had had it when I was reading Phenomenology of Spirit - it is incredibly useful, bordering on essential.
This work includes detailed explanations of several dozen of Hegel's key terms. For each, Inwood reviews the etymology of the German source term, its colloquial definition, its usage history in philosophy, and a detailed review and analysis of how Hegel uses the term, with citations to the relevant works.
For me, the review of the philosophical meaning of the terms is nearly as useful as the explanation of Hegel's specific usage. Hegel presupposes a vast knowledge of philosophy, and when looking up a term like "the Understanding," for example, it's enormously helpful to get a mini-review of how the term was used by Leibniz, Wolff, and Kant, before diving into Hegel's take.
Nearly every term I've looked up during my reading has been included, either with a full entry or as part of another entry. Pretty much every term you would expect to find is here: absolute, reflection, concept, idea, spirit, measure, sublation, infinity, immediate, and so forth. Some entries resemble mini-surveys of some of Hegel's main ideas, such as "Art, Beauty, and Aesthetics" or "Religion, Theology and Philosophy of Religion."
One minor criticism: I do not think it is appropriate to characterize Hegel's philosophy as a priori, as Inwood sometimes does. The very notion of the a priori is only coherent within a Kantian subject/object framework that Hegel clearly rejects and frequently criticizes. I do not believe Hegel himself ever applied that term to his own thought.
For anyone working their way through Hegel's work, I enthusiastically recommend this work.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews