In his preface, Hegel’s editor. Professor Eduard Hans, makes some interesting remarks upon the “ Philosophy of Bight,” and informs us as to the ■wav m which the matter of the book had been put togethei He dates his preface May 29th, 1833, tlmteen years, lacking one month, later than Hegel’s date for the tomidetion of his own preface, and eighteen months aftei the philosopher’s death. Hegel had, it would appeal, lived to see the outbreak of unusual ojiiiosition to his political conceptions, and so Dr Hans begins ‘ The wide-spiead uiisuiiderstauding, which pievents the lecogmtion of the leal value of the present woilc, and stands in the uav of its general acceptance, urgo me, now that an enlaiged edition of it has been prepaied. to touch upon some things, which I would rathei have left simplv to me leasing philosophic msight ” He goes on to give thiee leasous foi placing gieat value upon this woik of Hegel’s 1 He thinks that the highest piaise is due to the author for the way in which he does justice to every side of the subject, even investigating questions -which hare only a shght bearing upon the matter in hand, and thus erecting a marvellouslv complete structure This fact is more striking, thinks Di Gans, than the foundation of the work, which had been aheady in a measure laid In Kant and "Rousseau 2 A second achievement of the “ Philosophy of Eight ” IB the abolition of the distinction, so prominent in the X TRANSLAIOR’S PKEFACJC, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuiies, between law and politics Even m oui own time, lemaiks the oditoi, many think of law as the skeleton, as it woic, ot the difEerent toims of the state, as an abstiact thing devoid ot life and movement Pohties, again, they conceive to be more mobile and a iimctiou ot a living thing Law is thus said to stand to politics as auatomv to 2 >hysiology This diverg- ence, which was unknown to Plato and Aristotle, had its oiigin in the sejiaiatist clnaiactci ot the Middle Ages, and was biought to comxiletion in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuiies Hegel, gatheimg up the exjiciience of centuiies, returns to the toini of the ancient state, and counts law and jiolitics as oigamc 2 >hases of one single whole 3 The “ Philosoijhy ot Right ” suggests a two-fold place for the piinciiile ot natuial right In its scientifii treatment this laiuciiile piecedes the iihilosophy of right and it also comes at the close That jiait ot the “ Eiicv- clo^isedia ot the Philoso^ihital Sciences,” which jnecedes the discussion theie given ot light, moiality, and the ethical system, is designated the sub]ective mind or synrit, and from that giouiid iiatuial iiglit jiiocecds Skijiiiing ovei the legioii occuined by the “ Philosophy of Eight,” dealing with the objective spiiit, natural light leappeais in world- histoiy Di Grans means that the light oh the world- spirit, transcending, as it does, the individual and the nation, is a leturu at a higher level to natural right Nations are, as he says, so many streams discharging themselves into the world-ocean of history The thiee points of Piofessoi G-ans may be summarized thus (1 ) Hegel is thorough and systematic, (2 ) He has so deal and penetrating a conception of his mam idea that he IS able to unify sciences, which had seemed to be mutually exclusive, (3 } A light of nature may be viewed as a jihase ot any stage of aii expanding idea, and can be understood only by reference to the exact stage which the TBANSLATOa’S PREFACE XI exposition, has reached Hence a light of natnie, like sub- jectivity 01 objoctiiitv, may mean quite different things at different points in the unfolding of the system The smgle woid heio added is meant to accent what is implied in the thud of these remarks The “ Philosophy of Eight ” IS leally only one part of a system In the third pait of his “ Eiicyclopajdia,” when he reaches the subject of Eight, Hegel says {tiote to § 487 ) that he may deal briefly with this topic, since he has already gone exhaustively into it m his “ Philosophy ot Eight ” Hence as this work treats ot an essential stage in the evolution of spiiit, whose whole nature is untoldod scene bj' scene in the “ Encyclo- ptedia,” it IS not accuiale to speak of Hegel’s ethical piin- ciples as based ujioii his logic The inoic conciete cate- gories of the “ Philosojihy ot Eight ” are related each to the next m the same way as are the moie abstract categoiies treated ot in the logic But the i elation of the ethics to the logic IS not that ot suiieistiiictuie to foundation oi of applii ation to pimciplc, butol the more conciete to the less concrete stage oteiolution One single life inns tin ough the whole oigaiusin of the work Hence, Di Grans is not wrong 111 stating that this woik is an essential part of Hegel’s philosojihy, and adding that with the entire system it must stand oi fall Eathei, conectmg the dramatic tone of the lemaik, he says in effect that standing and faUmg arc not the only jiossibilities in the case of a great philosophy Noi, again, can the difteient works of a genuine philosopher be separated into those that are gold and those that aie alloy His work as a whole becomes a common possession, and in that way makes ready, as Dr. Gans say, foi a higher thought The unqualified rejection of any part of a phdosophei’s work is a challenge to his claim to rank as a gi eat thinkei But the only challenge which he could himself accept as genuine, is the one which is prepared to call in question the basis of his entire system Perhaps in the “Philosophy of Eight” the average XU IRAXSI^ArOH’S PREFACE philosopliieal woikei comes moie quickly to undei stand sometliing of Hegel than m his other wiitmgs At least Hegel in this hook is moie likely to collide diiectly with the leadei’s iiiepossessions, and theiefoie inoie speedily stimulates him to foiiii his own view No geuuiiie jihilo- sopher will hesitate to show what foim liis principles assume m i elation to tangiLle human interests Hegel exhibits philosophic bieadtli bv diessing up his ideas foi the tlioiougbfare, wlieie the every-day tlimkei finds it pos- sible to hob and nob with the master Tot the student must be again cautioned not to fancy that, because he “feels suie ” that Hegel’s conception of the family, of the monaich, oi of wai is defective, he has left his author behind Such a feeling is at best only a fiist step, and the student must go on to know how these practical ideas of Hegel aie iie< essitated by his geneial conception of the jnocess of spirit And the siiie feeling can survive only if it IS tiansfoimod into a consistent ciiticism of this funda- mental process The stronghold of Hegel may not be im- pregnable, but it will not fall on a mei e summons to sur- rendei The object ot the tianslatoi is to let Hegel speak at large foi himself What libeities have been taken with the Hegelian vocabularv arc illustiated by the index of words to be found at the close of this volume It has been con- sidered quite within the pi ounce of a translator to amelioiate Hegel's iigid jihiaseology Even as it is the English iNould read more smoothly, had the words “the individual, ’ “ the subject,’’ etc, been more frequently used instead ot “ paiticularity ” and “subjectivity,” but the substitution casts a different shade ovei Hegel’s thought Apart from the woids, the reader of German will miss also Hegel’s brackets and italics As Dr Gans lias pointed out, the piesent work is in form made up ot three elements, the paragraphs jiroper, the notes and the additions The paragraphs comprised the entire translator's prefaci: Xlll boot as it -was originally issued Then Hegel added what he in all his refeienccs to them calls Notet, although thev aie not expiessly so designated in the German text For the sake of simjilicity this teini has been used thioughout the book Aftei these notes bi Hegel aie frequently found Additions made by students of Hegel fioin his oral lectures and com- ments It IS but bale justice to the editors to say that these additions usually cast a welcome light upon the text Yet as they aie meie additions, not even supervised by Hegel, it is no mattei of siiijiiise that the student, in beginning a new paiagiaphmnst, in older to get the direct connection, leveit to the closing sentences not of the addi- tion or note but of the jnecedmg jiaiagraph It ought to be some comfort to the earnest leader to have in his hand all that Hegel on this subject thought to be worth saying Mistakes the translator has no doubt made, and it would be for him fortunate if woikers in this department were sufficiently interested in this translation to point them out S W. Dtde Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada, March 23rd, 1896 ERKATA P. 48, last line, read “ consists not in it:> satisfying ’’ P 116, 1 34, icad “since man in acting must deal with exter- nality ” P 157,1 16, reacf “such discernment as is implied m the judgment that,” etc AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
The immediate oceasion for pnbhdiing these outlines is the need of placinfr in the hands of mj bearers a guide to mT professional lectures 112*011 the Philosoiihr of Eight. Hitherto I bare used as leetiires that portion of the “ Encrclopsedia of the Philosophic Sciences" ^Heidelberg, 181 ". I irhich deals ivith this subject. Tlie pavsent \tork coreis the same ground in a more detailed aud srsteinatic trai.
But now that these outlines aie to be printed and giren to the general pubhe. there is an op]iortnnity of espilaining points which in Icctunng would be commented on omlly. Thus the liiifts aie eulaigc*! ui lude: to niilude cognate or conflicting ideas fuithci >.onsc'iiuoiuec of the tlieoii advo- cated, and the like These exp-auded notes "nill. it is hoj*ed, thiow light iipiou the moie abstract substance of the text, and puesent a moie lompdeio new of some of th* ideas ciuient lu 0111 c*wu time iloi-eover, there is also subjoined, as fai as was lompitible with the purpiose of a compiendium, a niinibei of notes, ranging over a still greater latitude A lomjiendiiim proper, like a science, ha.s its subject-ui.ittei aicuiateh hud out With the exception, possibh’, of one 01 two slight additions, its chief ta,sk IS to aiiange the essential pihascs of its iiiatenal This material is legarded a-< fixed and Icnowu, just as the form IS assumed to be goieined b\ well-ascei tamed lulos A treatise in philosophy is usually not expected to be con- structed on such a pattern, perhapis because pieopile su2ib XVI wriiOK’s preface pose that a pliilosophieal product is a Penelope’s vreb which must be started anew every day This treatise difters from the ordinary compendium mainly in its method of piocedure It must be under- stood at the outset that the philosophic way of advancing from one matter to another, the fteneral spefulative method, which is the only kind of scientific proof avail- able in jdiilosophy, is essentially different fiom even' other Only a < lear iiisntht into the necessitv for this dif- ference can snatch pliilosophv out of the i£;nominious con- dition into which it has fallen in our dav Tiue, the logical rules, such as those of definition, dassification, and inference aie non geneially lecogui/ecl to be inadeciiiate for speculatiK- s. leuce Pei haps it is ncaier the iiiaik to say that the iiiadeijuacy of the inles has been felt rathei than recogni/ed, because- thev have been counted as ineie fetters, and llnowu asicle to make loom foi fiee speech from the heart, tauc^y and laudoiu intuition. But when reflection and ic-l.itions ol thought wcie lecpiiied. people- unconsciou.slv tell back upon the old-fashioiii-d method of mfeiencc- ami formal leasoning — In my “ Seience of Logic” I haie dc-velo|>c-d the natuie of speculative scienci- in detail Hence in this tieatise an explanation of method will be added only lieic- and Ihcic- In a woik winch is conciete, and jnc-sc-iits such a dnersity of phases, we mai safely iieglc-ct to clisplav at evciy turn the logical piocess and mav take ioi gi,iiitc*d an ac cpiaiutaiieo with the scientifac piocecliire Besides, it may leadily be observed that the- work as a whole, and also the construction of the [),iits, lest upon the logical spirit Fioiii this standpoint, esjjccially, is it that I would like this tieatise to he iiiider- stoocl ami ]udgod In such a woik as this we are dealing with a s( ic-m e, and in a science the mattei must not be- s<-pai,itecl fiom the fonn Some, ulio aie thought to he taking a ^nofouud view are heard to say that everythmg tnrns upon the subiec-tauthor’s PHUFACi: XVll mattei, and that the foim may be i^noied The business of any writer, and esjiei lallv of the philosopliei, is, as thev say, to discover, uttci, and diffuse tinth and adequate conceptions In actual piactico tins business usually con- sists 111 waimni£t up and distiibutmif on all sides the same old cabbap;(-* Peihaps the lesiilt of this operation may be to fashion and aionse th<“ feeliiiiis, though even this small ineiit iiiav be logaided as supeifluous, for “thev have Moses and the piophcts let them heai them ’’ Indeed, we liaie meat lause to bo amazed at the preten- tions tone of those who take this view They seem to siijijiose that up till now the dissemination of truth thioiighoiit the woild has been feeble They think that the waimed-up cabbage contains new tiuths, esjiecially to be laid to lieait at the piesent time And vet we see that what IS on one side aiinoiincod as tine, is diiven out and swept awav bv the same kind of woiu-out tiiitli Out of tliisluulv-bnilv of opinions, that which is neithei new nor old, but jicimaneiit cannot be lesciied and preseived c\cept bv science Fuithei, as to lights, ethical oliscnvauces, and the state, the tintli IS as old.is that m which it is openly displayed and lecogmzecl, inunelc, the law moialitv, and religion But as the thiiikmg s])nit is not satisfied with 2iossessing the ti nth in this simide way, it must conceive it, and thus aequiie a lational foiin toi a content which is alieady latioiml nnplicitlv In tins wa} the substance is justified befoie the bai of fice thought Fiee thought cannot be satisfied with wliat is given to it, whether by the external positive authoiitv of the state oi human agreement, or by the authoiity of internal feelings, the heart, and the witness of the spint, which coincides unquestioningly with the ho.ait It is the iiatuic of fico thought lather to pro- ceed out of its own self, and hence to demand that it ahould know itself as thoioughly one with tiuth The ingenuous mind adheres with simple conviction to xvm AUIHOR’S PKUIAC]; the truth which is publicljr acknowledged On this foun- dation it builds its conduct and way of life In opposition to this naive view of tilings uses the supposed difliculty of detecting amidst the endless diffeiences of oiiinioii anything of universal application This tiouble may easily be sup- posed to spimg tiom a spiiit ot earnest impiiiy But in point ol tact those who pride themselves iiijon the exist- ence of this obstacle aie in the plight of him who cannot see the woods foi the tiees The contusion is all of then own making Na^, moie this confusion is an indication that they aie in fact not seeking for what is uuiveisalh valid in right and the ethical oidei If they woie at pains to find that out, and letused to busy themselves with eniptj opniiou and iiiinute detail, they woulil adhei e to and act in actoi dance with substantive light, namely the com- mands ot the state aud the claims of societj But a furthei difficulty lies in the fact that man thinks, aud seeks freedom and a basis foi conduct in thought DiviiU' as liis right to act iii this way is, it becomes a wiong, when it takes the place of thinking Thought then legaids itself as tree only when it is conscious of being at vaiianco with what is geiieiallv lecogniaed, and of setting itself iij) as something oiigmal Tlie idea that fieedoui of thought and mind is indicated only by deviation fioin, oi even hostility to wliat is evciv- where recognized, is most jieisistcut with regaid to the state Tlie essential task ol a philosophy of the state would thus seem to be the discovery and publication of a new and oiigmal tbeoiy When we examine this idea aud the wav it is a^iplied, we aie almost led to think that no state or constitution has ever existed, or now exists We are tempted to suppose that w'e must now begin and keep on beginning afiesli foi cvei Wo aie to fancy that the founding of the social older lias depended upon present devices aud discoveries As to nature, 2ibilosopby, it IS admitted, has to understand it as it is The pbilo- AU'IHOR’S PllEFACi; XIX sopheis’ stone must Le concealed somewheie, we say, in nature itself, as iiatnie is in itself rational Knowledge must, therefore, examine, appiehend and conceive the leasou actually jiresont in natiiie Not with the super- ficial shapes and accidents of natuie, but with its eternal hdimoiiy, that is to s.iv, its inheient law and essence, knowledge has to rojie But the ethical world oi the state, which is in fact lea&on potently and permanently actualized in self-consciousness, is not peimitted to en]oy the happiness of being leason at all ' On the contrary the ‘ There aic ti\o kiniK of l.aw-< laws of ii.atme anil laii-^ of right The Ians of iiatiiic <ue ■-iiinili theie, and aie laliil as they are Tlioy cannot he gaiii'anl although in certain cases tliey may be transgi esseil In oulei to know laws of natuie, we must set to work to asceitain them foi the\ aietiue, and only oiu ideas of tlioni can he fabo (If tlicso laws the ineasuio is outside of us ( liii knowledge ailds nothing to them, and does not further their opoiation Oiib mu know ledge of them expand® The know ledge of light IS paith of the same natuie and paitly ditlcicnt The laws ot light also aie simph ihcie and we haie to hecoiiie ac- (piaintod witli tlicmi In rhis way the cilucn has a nioie oi le=8 Inm hold of iliem as thei aio gnen to liiui, and the juiistalso abides bi the '.mio siandpomt lint there is also a distinction In connettion with the laws of light the spuit of ini cstigation is stiiicd ii]i and mu attention is tuiiied to the tact that the laws, because the\ aie dilloicnt aie not absolute Laws of light are cstabhslied and h,indud down bt men The iiinei \oiee must iieccssarih collide oi.igiee with them Man cannot be limited to what Is presented to him, 1ml mamtaiiis that he has tiic standard of right within himself He may he subject to the necessity and force of external authouty, but not in the same way as he is to the necessity of natuie, for alwn\s Ins inner being says to him how a thing ought to he, and within himself he finds the conGrmation or lock of conliimation of wdiat is geneinlly accepted In natuie the highest truth is that a law i® In light a thing is not valid be- cause it is, since etciy one demands that it shall confoim to his standaid Hence niises,i imssihlo conllict between what is and what ought to he, hetwceii absolute unchanging right and the aibitrary decision of what ought to he light Such ditisiun and strife occur only on the soil of the spirit Thus the unique pn\i- AL moil’s PREFAr r sx spiritual universe is looked ujxui ai abandoned by God, and {riven ovei as a piey to accident and c bance As in this way the divine is eliminated from the ethical woild, truth must be sought outside of it And smt e at the same time leabon should and does Ijeloni; to the ethical norld, tiuth, lieing dnorced tioin leason, is redured to a nieie spei illa- tion Thus seems to arise the necessity and dut_\ ot eieiy thinker to puisne a taieei ot his own Not tliat he needs to seek for the philosojihei s’ stone, since the ithilosoidiiziiig of our day has 'aiod him the trouble, and every -would-be thinker is couvim ed that he possesses the stone alreadv without seaii'h But these eiratic pietensions are. as it indeed happens iidieuled by all wlio whether they aie aware of it oi not, aie fonditioned in their lives by the lege of the 'inut woiihl apjieu to leail to iliscoutent anil luihaiiin- iiess, anil freipientlv w e aie iliiei ti d to nature in i oiitrast w itli the Huctiiations of hie lliif it i' ecaitiv in the opiiiisitioii,iii-ing lietnccn ah-ohue nght, ami that wliiili the aihitiari will seeks to make light that ilie iiieil lies ot knowing tliuroiiglil^ wliatnglic IS Men lau'l ojionh meet ami taie then leason.,iiiil eoiisulei the intionalitv of light '1 In- is the suliiei i-iiiattei ot oiii sciciiie in eontiast with jiiri'innilem e whnii ollen lias to do ineich with coiitiaihctions Moieoiei the woild ot to-dav has.in imjii i.itne need to make this inM‘stn.ntioii In ancient times lesjieet.iinl reierence for the law weie uimer',al lJut now the f.ishion ot the time has taken amitliei tiiiii and thought coiilionts e\ei\ thing wliieli h.as heeii,i]i]noied Theoiies now set thenisebes m ii])]io- sitioii to lealiti and make.is tliongh thc\ weie ahsohitely tine and neeessan \ml iheie i- now iiioic ]>ie~sing need to know and eonreiie the thoughts ujion light.Siiiee thought has exalted itself .Is the cssi iiti.il form, we must now he c.neful to apjirehend light .also as thought It would look.is though the dom weiethiowm ojieii for ei ei y casn.al o]iimon w hen tlioiiglit is thus m.ule to super- xene upon right JJnt tine thought of.a thing is not an 0]iinion, liut the f oneejition of the tiling itself. The coneeiition of the thing does not (ome to iis hv natiiic L\ei\ in.in h.as hngeis, and mnv li.ixe hnisli and lolouis, hut he is hoc h\ reason ot th.it a painter So IS il with thought rile thoiinhl of I milt Is not.1 thing w Inch Liei) m.Lii lias at hist hand 'J rue tiiinkiiig is thoiough acquaint- niiee w'lth the object Hence oiir know ledge must lie scientific AL'IUORS prkiacl XXI state, and find then minds aiidivills satisfied in it These, who include the majoiitv il not all, legaid the oecuiiatiou of philosophei s as a jrame, somotiines pla_\ fill, sometimes earnest, sometimes en.teitaimnjf, sometimes dant^eions, but always as a meie [fame Jloth this icstless and fiivolous leflection and also tins tieatment aicoided to it might safely be left to take then own course, i\eic it not that betwixt them philosophi is biou<;lit into discredit and con- tempt The most duel despite is done when eveiy one is convinced of his abiliti to jiass ]udgment ujiou, and discaid philosophy without au_\ sjieiial study No such scoin is heaped upon anj- othei ait oi science In point of tact the jii ctentioiis uttciances of lecent philosophy regal diiig the slate haie 1 icon enough to justify any one who caicd to meddle with ihe question, in tho con- viction that he could piove himselt a philosophei by weaving a philosophy out ot his own biam Notwith- standing this conviction, that which passes toi philosophy has ojienly announced that tiuth cannot be known The tiutli with legal d to ethical ideals, the state, the govein- ineut and the coiistitiit loii ascends, so it declares, out of each man’s heait, feeling, and enthusiasm Such declaia- tious have been ijouied especially into the eagei eais of the young The woids ‘ God givetli tiuth to his chosen in sleep ” have been apjilied to scieufc, hence eveiy sleepei has nnmbeied himselt amongst the chosen But what he deals with in sleep is onlv the w.iies of sleep Mi Flies,' one of the leaders of this shallow-minded host of philo- sophers, on a pubhe festive occasion, now become celebrated, has not hesitated to give utteiauce to the following notion of the state and constitution “ When a nation is ruled by a common spirit, then from below, out of the people, will come life sufiicient for the dischaige of all pubhe business ' I have alieaily liad occ.i'-ioii to notice the shallovvuecs of his science See “Science of Logic ’ (Niiinherg, 1812), Introduction, XXll Ai:iiioR’s PHin'Acr Living associations, united indissolubly by the holy bond of fnendship, ivill devote themselves to every side of national seivice, and eveiy means foi educating the people ” This is the last desriec of shalloirness, because in it science IS looked upon as develojnng, not out of thought or concep- tion, but out oi diicet peiceptionand landom fancy Now the organic conuectuni of the manifold blanches of the social system is the aichitcctonic of the state’s rationality, and 111 this supieine science of state aichitecture the stiength of the whole is made to depend upon tlie haimonv of all the eleailv maikecl phases of public life, and the stability of eveij' pillai, aicli, and buttiess of the social edifice And let the shallow doctrine, of which we have spoken, iieimits tins elaboiate stiuetuie to melt and lose itself in the blew and stew of the “heai't, fnendship, and inspiration ” Epicurus, it is said, believed that the woild geueially should be given over to each individual’s opinions and nliinis, and aecoiding to the view wo arc* ciiticismg the ethical faluic should lie tieated in the* same way By this old wives’ decoction, which consists in founding upon the feelings uhat li.is been foi mauv centuries the laboiii of reason and niidei standing, vie no longer need the guidance of any luliiig conception of thought On this point Goethe’s Mepliistoplieles, and the poet is a good anthoiity, has a lemaik, viliu li I have alreadv used elsewheie So li.vst ilem Teufel ilicli eigeben mill iiins-t /u (jlrunile gclin ” It IS no snrpnse that the view just criticised should appeal in the foim of piety Where, indeed, has this whirlwind of impulse not sought to justify itself f In godliness and the Bible it has imagined itself able to find anthoiity foi desjnsing older and law And, m fact, it is juoty i)t a soit which has icilueed the whole oiganized system of truth to elementary intuition and feeling. But AfiHOll’S PllErACK x^m piety of the right Icind leaves this, obscuie legion, and comes out into the daylight, nlieic the idea unfolds and levoals itself Out of its sauctiiaiv it hiings a leverence foi the law and tiuth whidi aie absolute and exalted above all suhiective feeling The partieulai ]:ind of eiil consi loiisness developed by the wishy-washy eloquence alieadv alluded to, may he detected in the following way It is most iinspiritual when it sjjc-alcs most ot the spiiit It is the most dead and leatlieiu, when it talks of the scope ot life When it is exhibiting the gieatest self-seeking and vanity it has most on its tongue the woids “ people ” and “ nation ” But its pecuhai maik, found on its veiy forehead, is its liatied of law Eight and ethical principle, the actual woild of light and ethical life, aie appieheudedin thought, and by thought aic gnen definite, general, ancl lational foiin, and this leasoned light finds expression in law But feeling, which seeks its owni pleasure, and conscience, winch finds light ni pi ii ate conviction, regaid the law as their most bitter foe The light, ivliiili takes the shape of law aud duty, is hv feeling looked upon as a shackle or dead cold letter In tins law it does not recognize itself and does not find itself fico Yet the law is the reason of the object, aud lefiises to feeling the jinvilege of warming itself at its piivate hearth Hence the law, as we shall (ccasionallv ohseiie, is the Slnhhololli, hv means of which aie detected the false biethien and fiiends of the so-called people Inasmuch as the puiest charlatanism has won the name w*' philosophy, and has succeeded in convincing the puhhc tliat its piactices aie philosophy, it has now become almost a disgrace to speak in a xihilosophic way about the state Nor can it he taken ill, if honest men become impatient, when the subject is hi cached Still less is it a surprise that the goveiniiieiit has at last tinned its attention to this false philosophizing With us philosophy is not practised XXIV AUrnOR’‘> PREFACE.
Ab a jjri\at<j art, as it -was by the 0-reets, but has a jiiibbc Ijlate, aud bhould therefore Ije employed only in the -.erTice of the state The froveninient ha'. uj> till now. shown such confadeuee in the siholaT- in this departiiient as to leaie the sublet t matter of j.hilosophy whollv in their bands Here and tliere pel haps lias been shown to this science not conhdente so inin h as indiffeienc e and pro- fessorships lia\e been retameil a^ a matter of tradition In France, as tai as I am awaie the piofessional teaching of metaphysics at li-ast lias talleii into desuetude In ani case the confidence ot tlie -tate h.as been ill requited by the teai heis of this subject Oi. it we pretei to see in the state not coiifideme, but indiftineuce, the decay of funda- mental knowledge must be lookeil upon as a seveie penance Indeed, shallowness is to all appisuanie most endurable and most in hainioiiy with tin maintenance of ordei and peace, when it does not touch oi hint at any real issue Hence it would nol l»e ncce-saii to bung it uudei public contiol, it the stale did not leqniie deejiei teaching and insight, aud e\])ei t science to -alistv the need Yet this shallowness, notwithstanding its scciinncg innocence, does bear ujjou social lifc^ light and duly gencially, advancing principles wLicIi aic- the leiy es<-ence of superficiality These, as we leave learned so decidedlv from Plato, are the principles ot tjie Wojihists, accoidiiig to which the basis of right IS sub)cjctive anus and cquiuons, subjective feeling and piivate c oii\ ic lion The lesult of such principles is fjuite as nine li the destruction of the ethical system, of the upright cousc leiice, of love and right, in private persons, as ot juiblic oidei and the institutions of the state The signihcaiic e ol tliese facts foi the authorities will not he obscmied by' tjie claim that the liolder of these penlous cloc times should be tiusted. or by the immunity of office The aiitlioiities will not be cleteiied by the demand that they should piotect and give liee play to a theory which strikes at the substantial basis of conduct, namely, uni- AL’IHOR’S prefacl.
XXV versal principles, and that tliev sliould disregaid insolence on tlie ground of its being tbc exeicise oi the teacliei’s function To him, to v'honi God qives offlie, He qwee also iindei standing IS aTvoll-ivom ]Cbt, whuh no one in oni tune nould like to take seiiotish- In the methods of teachmg 2>liil‘>'’Oph'i n Inch have under the circumstances been leaniiuated by the goi eminent, the important element of piotection and snjijioit cannot be Ignored The stud} of iihilosoidiv is in many ways in need of such assistance J)’iec|ucull} in scientific, lehgious, and other ■works ma} be lead a contein])t for philosophy Some, who have no cousjntuoiis ediiCiition and are total strangers to philosojiln, tieat it as a east-ofl: gaiment. They even rail against it, and ic'gaid as foolishness and sinful jiresnmjition its efloits to conceive of God and lihysical and spiiitual natiiie Thev scout its endeavoui to know the tiutli Keaton, and again leason, and leason in endless iteration is In them accused, despised, con- demned Piee exjnossion, also, is giieii by a laige niiinbei of those, who aie siiiijiosed to be cultivating scientific lesearch, to then auiiO}ance at the iiu.issailable claims of the concojitiou When 'we, I say, aie conficmted with such phenomena as these, we aie teiniited to haibour the thought that old tiaditions oi tolciaiicc have fallen out of use, and no longer assuie to jihilosoi-ihv a jilace and jmbhc lecognition ^