| Absolute Idealism |
Article Index for Absolute |
Website Links For Absolute |
Information AboutAbsolute Idealism |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT ABSOLUTE IDEALISM | |
| idealism | |
| georg hegel | |
| philosophical theories | |
| british philosophy | |
| history of the united kingdom | |
|
TEACHINGS If we try to rationally conceive that Absolute point, we will always fall short. We can describe it using different concepts, but no concept will adequately describe what that absolute is and give rise to a consideration of its opposite. For instance if we hold that the absolute is in fact Infinity , than that would mean that the finite would not be part of it, but finity is just as much a part of that underlying absolute as infinity is. The absolute is in fact the unity and ground of these concepts. We learn that every concept has a necessary relation to its opposite. Thoroughly thinking through this relation, one realises that it is present in every way we relate to an object, from an 'immediate' relation to what presents itself in front of my eyes this very moment, to considering the idea of God, or art for example. This absolute relation we have to the world creates in this Dialectic al fashion all concepts we use in order to understand the world. This works in the individual mind, but also through history. Our historical development – which Hegel called " Spirit " – can be seen as a journey through stages of explanations of the world. Each successive explanation created problems and oppositions within itself, leading to tensions which could only be overcome by adopting a view that could accommodate these oppositions in a higher Unity . At the base of spirit lies a rational development. This means that the absolute itself is exactly that rational development. The Assertion that "All reality is spirit" means that all of reality rationally orderis itself and while doing so creates the oppositions we find in it. Even Nature is not different from the spirit since it itself is ordered by the determinations given to us by spirit. Nature, as that which is not spirit is so determined by spirit, therefore it follows that nature is not absolutely other, but understood as other and therefore not essentially alien. The aim of Hegel was to show that we do not relate to the world as if it is other from us, but that we continue to find ourselves back into that world. With the realisation that both my mind and the world are ordered according to the same rational principles, our access to the world has been made secure. A security which was lost after Kant proclaimed the 'Ding an sich' to be ultimately inaccessible. The Absolute Idealist position should be distinguished from Berkeleyan Idealism ( Berkeley ), Transcendental Idealism ( Kant ), Subjective Idealism ( Fichte ), and Objective Idealism ( Schelling ). RELIGION Some form of idealism related to Absolute idealism has been a consistent favorite standpoint for earlier religious thinkers and philosophers. It is present in the thinking of many important Christian Theologian s such as Meister Eckhart . It is also the basis of Advaita Hinduism and several forms of Buddhism , including Zen , Madhyamika , Yogacara , and some interpretations of Pure Land . Classifying these directions under the common denominator 'absolute idealism' though would be incorrect, because it would blurr distinctions which are necessarry for comprehending these traditions in their own right. CRITICISM Generally speaking, criticisms of absolute idealism come specifically from the standpoint of analytic philosphy who criticised Hegels work as hopelessly obscure and existentailist philosophy, proponents of which criticise Hegel for ultimately choosing a essentialistic whole over the particularity of existence. Epistemologically, one of the main problems plaguing Hegels system is how these thought determinations have bearing on reality as such. A perennial problem of his metaphysics seems to be the question how spirit externalises itself and how the concepts it generates can say anything true about nature. At the same time, they will have to, because otherwise hegels system concepts would say nothing about something that is nbot itself a concept and the system would come down to be only an intricate game involving vacuous concepts. Schopenhauer Schopenhauer noted that Hegel created his Absolute Idealism after Kant had discredited all proofs of God 's existence. The Absolute is a non-personal substitute for the concept of God. It is the one subject that perceives the Universe as one object. Individuals share in parts of this Perception . Since the Universe exists as an Idea in the Mind of the Absolute, it copies Spinoza 's Pantheism in which everything is in God or Nature . SCIENCE Absolute Idealism or Hegelianism has influenced the Humanities to a great extent. In German they are called "Geisteswissenschaften" and in Dutch "Geesteswetenschappen", a direct influence of the Hegelian notion of spirit (Geist). In sociology for instance the position of important sociologist Ralph Dahrendorf is inspired by Hegel. Lately American historian Francis Fukuyama was inspired by an alleged thesis of Hegel, namely the End of History, to write an immensely popular book. That Hegel proclaimed the end of history though is a myth popularised by the French Hegel interpreter Aleksandr Kojeve. In many philosophic circles it is accepted that the philosophy of nature Hegel proposes is outdated, though it was state of the art when he proposed it. Currently contributors like Houlgate argue that Hegels philosophy of nature INFLUENCE Absolute Idealism has greatly altered the philosophical landscape. Paradoxically, (Though, from a Hegelian point of view, maybe not paradoxically at all) this influence is mostly felt in the strong opposition it engendered. Both neo positivism and analytic philosophy grew out of a rebellion against Hegelianism prevalent in England during the 19th century. Continental phenomenology, existentialism and post modernism too seek to 'free itself from Hegel's thought', Martin Heidegger, one of the leading figures of continental philosophy in the 20th century sought to distance himself from Hegels work. One of Heidegger's philosophical themes was "overcoming metaphysics". MAJOR IDEALISTS
SEE ALSO SOURCES
|
|
|