Hegel: Philosophy of world history and spirit

Philosophy professor Ellie Anderson discusses G.W.F. Hegel's views on world history and the nature of spirit. Why does Hegel think that world history is a rational process? How do freedom, the state, and ethical life fit into the world-historical process?

This video was created for Professor Anderson's Spring 2021 "Continental Thought" course at Pomona College. The text under discussion is G.W.F. Hegel's Introduction to the Philosophy of World History.

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok at @overthink_pod

[mencken]

One thing that is indisputable about Hegel is that reading him is a sure cure for insomnia.

[GeekPhilosopher]

This is the clearest exposition of Hegel's philosophy I have ever heard.

[BenjaminIdle]

it's been said many times in the comments already, but this channel is a beacon of light. The selection of topics, the professional handling of source materials, the ethical conversion from unapproachable to comprehensive accessibility, and the intuitively entertaining yet meaningful structure. it's good shit fr

[jti]

her passion for philosophy really comes through and is contagious

[capitalmarketsandinternati]

Kudos! To talk Hegel in such a lucid and coherent way, and cover such a broad field of Hegelian concepts requires more than skills and knowledge. You definitely have owned it.

[learn-unlearn]

For a long time I have been looking for someone who's able to explain these points in Hegel's philosophy, in a simple and relatable way. I think I just found the channel:) Looking forward to hearing more

[damonzex]

An outstanding elucidation of key Hegelian notions. You mentioned many key concepts but were able to simultaneously relate Hegel back to practical existence. I am currently reading his Science of Logic which actually sheds immense light on his metaphors in Phenomenology. How you described the movement of Geist across time is exactly in keeping with the essence of what he was imparting. Thank you for creating this outstanding and succinct analysis.

[guapelea]

Best philosopy teacher I've ever met. Just can't believe my ears.

[MrJsourouh]

Thanks for the video! You say at 1:30 that "there's no permanent, unchanging truth, and then history is the way that unfolds chronologically, no." Yet, just afterwards you say that "history is teleological...history is driving things forward to one certain end." How can I reconcile this? Doesn't this notion of progress presuppose a truth that history is driving towards? And thus, that history is indeed unfolding towards the recognition of a permanent (yet previously unrecognized) truth?

[tuliowz]

What a great video
I'm a philosophy grad student, and I'm very glad youtube got to recommend this video to me
still haven't studied much about Hegel, but I'm looking forward to it, thanks!!

[ben]

Absolutely the clearest and most accurate distillation of Hegel out there. Really excellent - very skilled to do that so effectively

[dr.phil.pepper]

The term "Geist" doesn't only mean "spirit" but also "mind, intellect, reason, rationality". The Phenomenology of Spirit is not so much about the moving force in history, but more an epistemological approach on how the mind works, from the individual level of recognition of objects up onto the abstraction from objects on a social level and self-recognition of the mind. The main question of the book is the same as in Kants Critique of Pure Reason - If and how it is possible to recognize metaphysical truth. But in opposition to Kant, Hegels answer is that it is possible through the analysis of the dialectic movement in nature and history, which is what he calls the "Spekulative Methode" (speculative method).

[kaivonmassenbach]

Thanks! Sounds like a very intellectual version of unity consciousness. I liked this explanation a lot!!

[sentimentalsediment]

Been following the channel for a while and have always loved it. I just started my M.A. in philosophy and my appreciation for you and David has swelled! Thank you for your work :)

[dhritichakraborty]

I notice you talk very clearly and with conviction…at first I found this distinctive and unusual, then realized maybe more women should talk this way more often.

[sweetcell]

This professor is really good, not doubting that, but it’s kinda concerning to see so many people saying: “such a clear exposition of Hegel”; “the clearest discussion of Hegel’s principle”. Reading these comments, should turn a philosophy student off. It’s not meant to be clear and concise

[hyperduality]

Teleology leads to the 4th law of thermodynamics:-
Being is dual to non being creates becoming -- Plato's cat.
Alive is dual to not alive -- the Schrodinger's cat superposition (duality).
Thesis (alive, being) is dual to anti-thesis (not alive, non being) creates the converging thesis or synthesis -- Hegel's cat or Fichte's cat, the time independent Hegelian dialectic.
Schrodinger's cat is based upon Hegel's cat and Hegel stole it from Plato (and Socrates).
Teleological physics (syntropy) is dual to non-teleological physics (entropy).
Syntropy (prediction) is dual to increasing entropy -- the 4th law of thermodynamics!
Concepts are dual to percepts -- the mind duality of Immanuel Kant.
Brahman (creator god, thesis) is dual to Shiva (destroyer god, anti-thesis) synthesizes Vishnu (preserver god) -- Hinduism or the Hegelian dialectic.
You can derive the Hegelian dialectic from the Hindu religion.
Action is dual to reaction -- Sir Isaac Newton (the duality of force).
Cause is dual to effect -- forces are correlated.
Forces are a by product of conserving the duality or correlation of cause & effect.
Attraction is dual to repulsion, push is dual to pull (forces and hence energy are dual).
"Always two there are" -- Yoda.
Absolute truth is dual to relative truth -- Hume's fork.
The Necker cube is a good visual example of duality and you should watch the spinning dancer:-
Bi-stability implies duality.
Clockwise is dual to anti-clockwise.
Master (lordship) is dual to slave (bondsman) -- the Hegelian dialectic.
Left brain dominance is dual to right brain dominance -- brain hemispheres.
Left or right brain dominance? Either way you have duality and Hegel becomes absolute truth!
Forwards is dual to backwards -- which is way is the train moving?:-
Energy is dual to mass -- Einstein.
Dark energy is dual to dark matter.

[christopherellis]

Hegel was undethinking. It's actually magical thinking 🤔 Ideals are the lies that we live by.

[williamkraemer]

I wish every college student could have a philosophy professor like Prof. Anderson.

[pratikgore]

Learning hegel has always been one step forward and 2 steps back for me. For the first time I can say I have gone one step forward and one step back.