In his Introduction to the
History of Philosophy, Hegel undertook to say what philosophy is; that it can be said to have a history. He treated philosophy as an organic unity, a process, to which philosophers down through the ages have made contributions. Thus in Hegel's view, the history of philosophy is inseparable from doing philosophy, and philosophy can be done only historically. Hegel engaged in a critique both of "philosophies" and of the ways of treating philosophy's history. The author's analysis, combined with his translation of a version of the Introduction not previously available, makes intelligible a mode of philosophical thinking which is highly complex and which has had an extraordinarily formative influence on contemporary thought. The result is a treatment more readily understandable to the educated reader than would be Hegel's own technical vocabulary.
About the AuthorQuentin Lauer was Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Fordham University.
ReviewsThe most authoritative version of Hegel's "Introduction" to his lectures on the history of philosophy. The translation is a model of its kind. * -International Philosophical Quarterly *
Book InformationISBN 9780823209279
Author Quentin LauerFormat Paperback
Page Count 159
Imprint Fordham University PressPublisher Fordham University Press