https://www.reddit.com/r/hegel/comments/1azcyju/something_to_start_reading_hegel/
created by mexicococo on 25/02/2024 at 02:39 UTC
12 upvotes, 9 top-level comments (showing 9)
I have been kicking the can of reading Hegel since I got to read Marx & Engels' *The German Ideology*, and I have got books like Lectures on the Philosophy of History, but I don't know if that is a good start on absolute idealism. If you could help me with this I would thank you a lot.
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Greetings et XOXO, FCL.
Comment by eanji36 at 25/02/2024 at 03:06 UTC
13 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Reading hegel will always be difficult you'll just have to start. I can recommend my personal preference which is Todd Mcgowans book Emancipation after Hegel. It's not a long read but will give you a good idea what hegel is about and will make it easier to read him.
Comment by iunoionnis at 25/02/2024 at 12:30 UTC
5 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I would recommend starting with this short essay by Hegel, which I actually use as the first text I teach philosophy students in intro to philosophy:
https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/hegel/works/se/abstract.htm[1][2]
1: https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/hegel/works/se/abstract.htm
2: https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/hegel/works/se/abstract.htm
Here, Hegel explains the difference between "abstract" thinking and what he will later call "concrete" thinking, an important distinction for both Hegel and the Marxist tradition.
Next, while the introduction to the philosophy of history can teach you quite a bit about Hegel and is a good first text, if you are reading Hegel for understanding Marxism, I think it's important to dive into the logical writings. While both the *Science of Logic* and the *Encyclopedia Logic* are quite difficult, Hegel's Berlin *Lectures on Logic* present his logical system in a much less complicated form with lots of good examples, since it's aimed at his students. You can also read the Berlin *Lectures on Logic* alongside the *Encyclopedia* *Logic*, since the *Encyclopedia* was designed for his students in order to accompany the lectures.
Comment by Compositeur at 25/02/2024 at 09:35 UTC
4 upvotes, 1 direct replies
In the Why Theory? Podcast, they recommend starting with the Lectures on the History of Philosophy (NB. not Lectures on the Philosophy of History, which they directly suggest is a bad place to start with Hegel as it contains a lot of racist comments while the non-racist stuff is easier To understand once you have more of his other work), the preface to the Phenomenology of Spirit and the Encyclopaedia logic. There’s a wide variety of secondary texts, though there is a real divergence of interpretations across those texts.
As you have a background in Marxism, you may be interested to start with Kojève’s Introduction to the Reading of Hegel, which articulates a typical 20th century Left-Hegelianism and was deeply influential on French philosophy of the subsequent period. Kojève is especially concerned with the Master-Slave dialectic and has less to say about the metaphysical content which is more associated with the Science of Logic.
For a contemporary reading which looks to bring the developments of left-hegelianism together with Hegel’s metaphysics, you might enjoy “Emancipation after Hegel” by Todd McGowan. It’s a project which is related to “Absolute Recoil” by Slavoj Žižek, which attempts to articulate a new approach to marxist materialism which is congruent with hegelian idealism.
Comment by MarzipanEnough2306 at 05/03/2024 at 20:49 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I recommend Hegel’s Foundation Free Metaphysics (Routledge Studies in Nineteenth-Century Philosophy).
https://www.amazon.com/Foundation-Metaphysics-Routledge-Nineteenth-Century-Philosophy/dp/0367503069/ref=sr%5C_1%5C_1?crid=7WPOMJRVDDO4&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.J-10gkdGVFHHmJAaYH6OVLl%5C_fBKfW5P1IBQNqiILj4pN2vmZjUbP9Cs17FoR8L6tfsxWzVfjQMZaDhgpZF-z6BWPT6RQ8imEOq%5C_PzcMliB4.ntfL%5C_StTLVaq1rRZzzvvcN4OY453lVgHro2s1BaCJcE&dib%5C_tag=se&keywords=hegel%27s+foundation+free+metaphysics&qid=1709671722&sprefix=hegel%27s+foundatio%2Caps%2C203&sr=8-1[1][2]
Comment by [deleted] at 09/03/2024 at 04:16 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Comment by Wotc_SnowFlakes at 25/02/2024 at 08:17 UTC
-2 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Or you can read the Gernsn version. Better that way since reading something translated will always lose some meaning, somehow. Also it makes you learn the language
Comment by ZeitVox at 25/02/2024 at 18:50 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
look for downloadable PDF of Early Theological Writings (Theologische Jugendschrifte) The intro by Richard Kroner goes pretty hard
Comment by dieunmittelbare at 26/02/2024 at 02:38 UTC
1 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Everyone is just suggesting reading other commentators on Hegel, that's fine, it's really good.. but for me, the best thing (if you already have some philosophical scope or something) is to go directly to the text. So first of all I would suggest you to start with Phenomenology or the Science of Logic to become more familiar with the type of process that engenders Hegelian dialectics, end even with the way he uses vocabulary.... but if possible, always consulting the Encyclopedia of the Philosophical Science too.
Comment by Coinboiiii at 29/02/2024 at 15:03 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
The encyclopaedias are a good place to start imo