Customer Reviews

Routledge Philosophy GuideBook to Hegel and the Phenomenology of Spirit (Routledge Philosophy GuideBooks)

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Robert Stern's commentary on Hegel's Phenomenology of the Spirit is another strong addition in the Routledge Philosophy Guidebook series. Even by the arcane standards of German idealism Hegel's Phenomenology is a notoriously difficult text, at once, both, beautifully poetic and frustratingly specious. It can be impenetrable for the first-time reader if approached without the assistance of a skilled guide (or two). Following are comments for potential purchasers:

First. Stern is readable, short and clear - not overly laden with technical jargon. More advanced students may wish to augment this text with a more detailed commentary from the likes of Harris, Hyppolite or Lauer.

Second. Citations are referenced to Miller's standard English translation of the Phenomenology.

Third. A modest drawback is the lack of a glossary. Hegelian terminology can be especially difficult, hence some guidance would be useful.

Fourth. Jay Bernstein has a wonderful yearlong graduate-level course discussing the Phenomenology available on-line for no cost at BernsteinTapes.com. Kudos to the folks who have made this available, it is an outstanding resource.

Overall, I highly recommend Stern's commentary for readers approaching the Phenomenology for the first time. Even with this excellent guide, however, a solid background in academic philosophy is probably required to fully appreciate Hegel.

Reading Hegel with the goal of true understanding is daunting. Due to the challenges that Hegel proffers to the first-time reader it is quite helpful to have an array of secondary writing to aid in penetrating Hegel's thought. In no way is Robert Stern's book a singular reference for a robust understanding of Hegel; however, Stern does not claim his work is anything more than the titular series indicates: a guidebook.

Stern is vulnerable to attacks that his work is a mere "Cliffs Notes" as one reviewer wrote; however, this is disingenuous to the very idea of a guidebook series, an arrogant claim that misconstrues the works purpose, and most unfortunately belittles the honesty of Stern's inclusive writing. Stern does not read as having a desire to exclusively argue for his personal reading of Hegel. He does state his reading of Hegel, yet he is not so intellectually timid as to not to explain where and why arguments arise amongst scholars and often diverge from his own. Stern's intellectual honesty is quite commendable and gives evidence that he understand that a guidebook is not a volume to share only one's personal readings nor is it to necessarily advance scholarship; rather, it is to serve the vital function of aiding August readers to tackling Hegel.

No single work can guide a reader through Hegel, but Robert Stern does offer a nice guidebook for those starting their long journey reading Hegel. I recommend this book for new readers of Hegel who need an affordable supplement to their reading.

Hegel is a system philosopher...he provides an arching phenomenological philosophy. He dealt with huge concepts and spawned many philosophers...Marx, Nietzche, keirkegaard, Husserl, Schopenhauer, Sartre,
His mega philosophy is not helped by his writing style. Hegel is one of the most difficult philosophical reads, that a hegelian dictionary and assistant reader is almost non-negotiable. The Rutledge Hegel reader is one of the best, and was recommended to me by my Hegel expert professor...and it proved to be more than adequate. Having this book as you go through Hegel's phenomenology of spirit made the understanding of this tome much easier. It is clear, precise and has depth in understanding Hegel.

An introduction to Hegel is, in the first place, a certain barbarism. Given the emphasis that Hegel himself put on the act of pursuing the movement of The Phenomenology as a literary experience, we should be perhaps a bit hesitant to have such an experience augmented and, hence, swayed towards a particular reading. But, let's face it, The Phenomenology is so stuffed full of complex neologisms, seemingly circumlocutious sentences, and haphazard diversions as to likely lose the uninitiated within a few pages. It would seem that would really be helpful for those who haven't cut their teeth on Hegel yet would be an introduction to Hegel's style, both literary and philosophical, that would ease their entry into The PDG. Unfortunately, Stern's intro is much less a passage into Hegel, than a shortcut around him. Nowhere in "Hegel and The Phenomenology of Spirit" will you find an explanation of negativity, synthesis, or movement per se; they have been displaced in favor of more readily intelligible paraphrases, if at all directly mentioned. Hegel quotations appear periodically throughot the text, but without any insight into their meaning as such. To an unaccustomed reader, it probably seems like Stern is interpreting nebulous, equivocal poems. The bare bones outline structure of the Routledge Philosophy Guidebooks makes them much less amenable to thinkers like Hegel, Heidegger, Derrida, etc. whose style and precision with words eludes a simple rephrasing. Much like a book on Heidegger that didn't mention dasein, concealment, or concern would, Hegel and the Phenomenology Of Spirit leaves us with little assisstance in penetrating the actual text itself. Like many others, it is a good example of dry-humping an integral work in the history of philosophy.