The individual's true original nature and his substance are the spirit of the alienation of natural being. Das wahre ursprüngliche Wesen des Individuums und seine Substanz ist der Geist der Entfremdung des natürlichen Seins.

I am currently reading "Embracing Alienation" and it points to Hegels understanding of Alienation/Entfremdung as a inherent, not escapable, not solvable. The internal dialectic of seing me as a "Wesen" that is aware of itself as a "Wesen".

from Diagram of Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit tags.to-watch

Decent summary of my remarks from ChatGPT: This summary outlines a lecture that attempts to diagram Hegel's "Phenomenology of Spirit," providing a simplified visual representation of Hegel's complex philosophical ideas. The lecturer acknowledges the limitations of this approach, as it cannot capture the full depth and detail of Hegel's work.

Sense Certainty(Sinnliche Gewissheit): Hegel starts with the basic form of knowledge called "sense certainty," akin to pre-Kantian perspectives, where objects exist independently and knowledge is gained in an immediate, unproblematic way. However, this form of knowledge encounters contradictions and realizes its inadequacy as terms like "now" or "here" are more abstract than they appear, leading to the understanding that the mind plays a role in mediating knowledge. Perception(Wahrnehmung): From the ashes of sense certainty, a new shape of consciousness emerges, called "perception." This stage recognizes that objects are mediated by concepts of understanding and by space and time. A dialectic unfolds as consciousness tries to reconcile the unity of an object with its multiple properties, eventually leading to the realization of its inadequacy. Force and Understanding(Kraft und Verstand): The next stage, "force and understanding," sees consciousness recognizing a supersensible substratum behind objects. This leads to an understanding of the identity of subject and object but still lacks complete self-consciousness. Self-Certainty: As consciousness evolves, it reaches "self-certainty" or self-consciousness, where the self assimilates objects to itself. It encounters another self-consciousness, leading to Hegel's famous master-slave dialectic. This stage involves a battle for recognition and an eventual realization of a master-slave dynamic, which the slave overcomes by internalizing the dialectic. Stoicism and Religious Consciousness: The progression leads to stoicism and religious consciousness, where self-consciousness grapples with its division and seeks freedom, eventually leading to the realization that the divine is within oneself. Reason: The stage of "reason" sees the self-consciousness becoming aware of its unity with nature and the evolutionary process of objects and subjects. However, this stage still needs to overcome itself to reach full knowledge. Absolute Knowledge: The journey towards absolute knowledge requires social institutions and forms. Hegel emphasizes that this is not just an individual's journey but the journey of absolute spirit, which eventually becomes self-conscious of its own spiritual being. The lecturer encourages students to read Hegel's "Phenomenology of Spirit" despite its complexity and the potential need for multiple readings

First Encounter

Not really my first encounter but starting to more attune to Hegels ideas by reading books.notes.embracing-alienation