Hegel's Logic and Metaphysics

This book offers a new interpretation of Hegel's Logic, the foundational work of his philosophical system.

Jacob McNulty (Author)

9781316512562, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 26 January 2023

288 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 2 cm, 0.56 kg

'An important and first-rate contribution—bold, original, well argued, and rich with historical and systematic implications. By drawing attention to the 'logocentric predicament,' McNulty clarifies Hegel's defense of metaphysics against worries like Kant's.' James Kreines, Claremont McKenna University

Kant said that logic had not had to take a single step forward since Aristotle, but German Idealists in the following generation made concerted efforts to re-think the logical foundations of philosophy. In this book, Jacob McNulty offers a new interpretation of Hegel's Logic, the key work of his philosophical system. McNulty shows that Hegel is responding to a perennial problem in the history and philosophy of logic: the logocentric predicament. In Hegel, we find an answer to a question so basic that it cannot be posed without risking incoherence: what is the justification for logic? How can one justify logic without already relying upon it? The answer takes the form of re-thinking the role of metaphysics in philosophy, so that logic assumes a new position as derivative rather than primary. This important book will appeal to a wide range of readers in Hegel studies and beyond.

Introduction
German Idealism and the Logocentric Predicament
1. 'Irrational Cognition of the Rational': Hegel on Aristotelian Logic
2. The Ontological Proof as 'The True Critique of the Categories and of Reason': Hegel on Kant's Transcendental Logic
3. Hegel's Critique of 'The Former Metaphysics'
4. Hegel's Response to Kant's Critique of Metaphysics
5. Logical Contradiction and Real Opposition: Hegel on the Laws of Logic
6. Mediated Immediacy: Concept, Judgment and Syllogism
7. A Circle of Circles: Analysis, Synthesis, Dialectic.

Subject Areas: Philosophy: metaphysics & ontology [HPJ], Western philosophy: c 1600 to c 1900 [HPCD]