This volume explores the relationship between justice and freedom in Hegel’s practical philosophy, with a particular focus on the pivotal concept of reciprocal recognition. The contributors analyze the intersubjective relations between individuals and institutions through the lens of Hegel and demonstrate how his account of justice and freedom can be applied to address pressing issues in political philosophy.
Despite extensive scrutiny of the concept of justice by political philosophers, Hegel’s unique account has been notably overlooked. What sets Hegel apart is his emphasis on the inseparable link between justice and freedom. Freedom is inextricably tied to an account of just social relations and institutions, while justice itself is intertwined with a robust endorsement of freedom. The chapters comprising this volume examine three crucial dimensions of Hegel’s framework for freedom and justice. First, the contributors address how Hegel’s distinctive integration of freedom and justice sheds new light on the nature of his practical philosophy. Second, they relate Hegel’s theory to other prominent accounts of justice, including Rawlsian forms of Kantian constructivism, Habermas’ neo‑Kantian discourse theory, republican views, neo‑Aristotelian accounts, and critical theory approaches. Finally, the contributors apply Hegel’s reconstructed theory of justice to ongoing debates encompassing criminal justice, distributive justice, global justice, environmental justice, and issues related to racial and gender justice, as well as populism.
Justice and Freedom in Hegel will appeal to scholars and advanced students engaged in research on Hegel’s practical philosophy, 19th‑century philosophy, and political philosophy.
Introduction Paolo Diego Bubbio and Andrew Buchwalter 1. Freedom From, Freedom To, and Freedom In: A Hegelian Account Arto Laitinen 2. Hegel’s Contextual Theory of Freedom: How “The Free Will Wills the Free Will” Thom Brooks 3. Recognition and Justice in Hegel’s Cognitivist Ascriptivism Michael Quante 4. Philia, Recognition, and Justice between Aristotle and Hegel Italo Testa 5. Teleological Right: Stages of Expressive Validity in Hegel’s Theory of Justice Dean Moyar 6. A Legal Concept of Justice Jean-François Kervégan 7. Freedom and a Just Society—Three Hegelian Variations Heikki Ikäheimo 8. Reciprocal Recognition and Hegel’s Embedded Conception of Practical Normativity Andrew Buchwalter 9. Weltgeschichte as Weltgericht: History and the Idea of the World in Hegel Angelica Nuzzo 10. Hegel’s Dialectic of Enlightenment: The French Revolution as an Emblem of Modernity Espen Hammer 11. Hegel’s Externalization of Justice: From the Rabble to True Personhood Paolo Diego Bubbio 12. Hegel on Race, Gender and the Time and Space of Justice Kimberly Hutchings 13. Hegel on Justice and Nature Elaine P. Miller
Paolo Diego Bubbio is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Turin and Adjunct Associate Professor at Western Sydney University. He is the author of Sacrifice in the Post‑Kantian Tradition (2014) and God and the Self in Hegel: Beyond Subjectivism (2017) and the co‑editor of Hegel, Logic and Speculation (2019). Andrew Buchwalter is Presidential Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at the University of North Florida. He is the author of Dialectics, Politics, and the Contemporary Value of Hegel’s Practical Philosophy (2011) and the editor of Hegel and Global Justice (2012), Hegel and Capitalism (2015), and Culture and Democracy (1992).
Reviews for Justice and Freedom in Hegel
"""Construed as a fundamental articulation of freedom, justice is a category infusing the totality of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right. Hegel's concept of the state includes a modern theory of justice, and the state itself is regarded as an objective embodiment of justice. This volume brings together important contributions that elucidate this field of inquiry from various intriguing perspectives."" Professor Klaus Vieweg, University of Jena"
