On the Nature of Philosophical Criticism in General

This modern translation contains an afterword explaining this work's place in Hegel's larger philosophic system, the relevant historical background, and a timeline of his life and works. The modern language of the translation and scholarly apparatus are designed to orient the modern reader to Hegel's world in his time, and highlight the continued influence of Hegel in our day. Hegel, a generally inaccessible philosopher due to the sheer size and intricacy of his thought, is explained through the interpretation of Tolstoy, Nietzsche, Schopenhauer and Heidegger in this Afterword to make his historically important body of work accessible to the armchair philosopher.<br/><br/>This essay would form the basis of Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit. This was first printed in 1802 in the Critical Journal of Philosophy, edited by Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. In this article, Hegel stresses the need for an objective standard for philosophical criticism, independent of both the critic and the criticised. He argues that there can only be one philosophy and that there is only one reason. Therefore, there should be only one true philosophy, and criticism has the task of determining the nature and degree to which the idea of philosophy is clearly expressed in a philosophical work. Hegel also identifies various types of philosophising of his time, including those that masquerade as original but are in fact empty word games. He criticises the tendency to invent particular principles and systems without recognising the ideal philosophy, and argues against what he calls 'provisional philosophising', in which philosophers use existing knowledge without any real systemic understanding.<br/><br/>Hegel's essay "On the Nature of Philosophical Criticism" appeared in the first issue of the Kritische Zeitschrift für Philosophie, which he co-edited with Schelling during his early years in Jena. The piece served as a manifesto for the journal and articulated Hegel's vision of what genuine philosophical criticism should entail. Written at a time when German intellectual life was dominated by competing philosophical systems and endless reviews and counter-reviews, the essay sought to establish higher standards for philosophical discourse and criticism.<br/><br/>The text develops a sophisticated conception of philosophical criticism that goes beyond mere fault-finding or subjective opinion. Hegel argues that true philosophical criticism must grasp the underlying principles and systematic nature of the work being criticized, rather than simply picking apart individual claims or arguments. True criticism, he argues, should recognize how particular philosophical positions emerge from and express the Absolute, even if they do so inadequately. This approach reflects Hegel's emerging view that philosophy must grasp the rational unity underlying apparent oppositions and contradictions.<br/>In this methodological manifesto, Hegel distinguishes between genuine philosophical criticism and what he sees as the superficial critical practices of his day. In particular, he takes aim at critics who approach philosophy from external standpoints - whether those of common sense, personal feeling, or isolated reflection. Instead, he argues for a form of imminent criticism that enters into the inner logic of philosophical systems to reveal both their achievements and their limitations. The essay thus provides crucial insights into Hegel's understanding of philosophical method and his vision of how philosophical dialogue should proceed. It also reveals his growing independence from earlier models of criticism, whether Kantian or Romantic, as he develops his own distinctive approach to philosophical analysis.