Ep. 35: Hegel on Self-Consciousness

Product Description

Discussing G.F.W. Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit (1807), Part B (aka Ch. 4), “Self-Consciousness,” plus recapping the three chapters before that (Part A. “Consciousness”).

This is discussion one of two: here we only get as far as “The Truth of Self-Certainty,” i.e. sections 166-177. This is plenty, though, as this may be the most difficult text in the history of philosophy.

We discuss Hegel’s weird dialectical method and what it says about his metaphysics, in particular about ourselves: not static, pre-formed balls of self-interest, but something that needs to be actively formed through reflection, which in turn is only possible because of our interactions with other people.

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Running Time: 1 hr., 28 min. Recorded: March 13, 2011. Participants: Mark, Wes, Seth, and Tom McDonald

As a bonus, your purchase includes a high-bitrate mp3 of the song that concludes the episode, “Ann(e),” by Mark Lint, recorded 2010, from the album The Cheese Stands Alone.