Hegel and the Symbolic Mediation of Spirit

Kathleen Dow Magnus is an instructor of philosophy at the Julius-Maximilians-Universitat, Wurzburg, Germany.

"The strength and originality of Kathleen Dow Magnus's work is that she sees Hegel's texts as deepening our understanding of true self-determination and of the vital role played by symbols in such self-determination. Thanks are due to Dr. Magnus for showing us a Hegel who continues to be deeply relevant to both the modern and the postmodern worlds." — Stephen Houlgate, editor of Hegel and the Philosophy of Nature"Semiotics and symbolism (in and out of literature) are both important subjects, and controversial ones as well. Neither has been much discussed in relation to Hegel. This book is a welcome supplement to other treatments of Hegel's theory of language. It has much to teach us." — Martin Donougho, University of South Carolina-Columbia

• Foreword by Stephen HoulgateAcknowledgmentsA Note on the Textual SourcesAbbreviations of Hegelian Texts Cited Introduction I. Derrida's provocation A. Metaphor and philosophyB. Spirit's use of the sign II. The need to consider the symbolic A. Other commentators on Hegel and the symbolB. Spirit's symbolic self-determination in the imagination, art, and religion III. Hegel's idea of spirit A. Neither right nor leftB. Spirit's identity and difference 1. The Symbol and the Sign in Hegel's Philosoph y I. Basic Terminology A. The symbol and the sign in the Hegelian textB. Twentieth-century understandings of the symbol and the sign II. Can philosophy conceive the symbolic? A. Conscious symbolism of the comparative typeB. Metaphor in philosophical aesthetics 2. The Means to Theoretical Self-Determination I. The rise of the symbol and sign-making capacities (Or, does spirit consume the sensuous?) A. Intuition (Anschauung)B. Representation (Vorstellung) II. From symbol to sign: a different kind of difference (Or, is the sign a transparent means of spirit?) A. The imagination's creation of symbols and signsB. The importance of the sign and the symbol III. Sign of memory (Gedachtnis) and language (Sprache) (Or, how does the intelligence determine the "other"?) A. Names, meaning, and existenceB. The symbol and the sign as elements of language IV. The loss of meaning and the transition to thought (Or, how can spirit make itself be?) A. Mechanical memoryB. Spirit's theoretical determination 3. Spirit's Symbolic Self-Presentation in Art I. Art in general A. Art as the presentation of spiritB. Art as symbolicC. Art as necessary and dissolving II. The symbolic form of art A. Symbolic art's lack with respect to art's idealB. The different forms of symbolic artC. The importance of these symbolic forms III. The classical form of art A. The supersession of symbolic art's deficienciesB. Symbolic elements of classical art IV. The romatic form of art A. Romantic art as a spirit advanceB. Symbolic elements of romantic art V. The "end" of art? A. Art's dissolutionB. Art's (symbolic) absoluteness 4. Spirit's Symbolic Self-Representation in Religion I. Religious consciousness as symbolic A. Pre-representational forms of religious consciousnessB. Religious representation and the symbolic II. Symbolic elements of finite religions A. Indian religion, the religion of imagination (Phantasie)B. Egyptian religion, the religion of riddles (Ratsel)C. Greek religion, the religion of beauty (Schonheit)D. Jewish religion, the religion of sublimity (Erhabenheit) III. Symbolic elements of absolute religion A. Absolute versus finite religionsB. The Christian conception of the trinityC. The Christian conception of the incarnationD. Community, tradition, and interpretation IV. The human, the divine, and the symbolic A. The need for the symbolicB. The unity of the human and the divine 5. The Process of Philosophy and Spirit's Symbolic Mediation I. Philosophy and the symbol A. The transparency of thought: philosophy, logic, and truthB. The double meaning of meaning II. Philosophy in relation to art and religion A. Philosophy's comprehension of art and religionB. Spirit's need to be in an other form III. Hegel's idea of spirit A. Genuine self-determinationB. The process is the result ConclusionNotesBibliographyIndex