Week 2 Hegel and Africa Flashcards
What is the World Spirit and how is it embodied? (3 points)
1) History is the progression of the World Spirit.
2) The World Spirit is the manifestation of God/Absolute Mind in man.
3) The World Spirit actualized is universal freedom which is embodied in the state.
How does the World Spirit relate to states? What “states” are involved in this? (3 points)
1) The World Spirit actualized is universal freedom which is embodied in the state.
2) The consciousness of the Spirit develops in stages seen in states.
3) Four historical worlds where this development is seen: Oriental, Greek, Roman & finally German.
How is Africa divided and described (2 points)
Africa is divided into 3 parts:
1) Africa proper - South of Sahara
2) European Africa - North of Sahara
3) Egypt - connected to Asia
Africa is described as the land of childhood and enveloped by “Night”
Think Geography & History
Why does it not make sense to divide Africa up like Hegel did? (3 points)
Africa cannot be divide up into 3 geographically, culturally or historically.
1) Geographically, Africa is a continent and not connected to Europe.
2) Egypt is not connected to Asia.
3) Black Africans have always been found north of the Sahara.
Why is Africa or the African excluded? (4 points)
1) The African has no “I” or consciousness.
2) The African has no morality.
3) The African has no concept of a Higher Being and therefore no respect for himself or humanity. African religion is characterized by fetishism.
4) The African lacks a political constitution, the universal laws are unrecognized and African communities are ruled by despot.
According to Hegel what is the Soul and how does it develop? (3 points)
1) The Soul is the lowest phase of mind, just above animality.
2) The Soul is the level where the Spirit is asleep and one with the environment.
3) There are 3 stages to the Soul:
natural, feeling and actual
Explain the 3 stages of the Soul and how it involves consciousness. (4 points)
1) Natural - beginning of the Spirit. Influenced by the environment and unconscious of it
2) Feeling - outcome of accumulation of the sensations e.g. sense experience, passion and emotion
3) Actual - awakening of “I”. Transcends natural world, regards it as objective and alien to itself.
4) Consciousness only occurs after the Soul has moved through these stages
Why does the African not have consciousness? (1 point)
The African is still in the first stage of “Nature” and still influenced by nature. The African thus has not reached consciousness.
Think universal will and consciousness
According to Hegel what is Morality and what are its 3 phases? (4 points)
1) Morality is purely subjective. It excludes positive duties connected with the family, society and state as these are all objective.
2) It passes through 3 phases:
* Purpose
* Intention and well-being
* Goodness and wickedness
3) The third phases only occurs after the first 2 phases coincide with universal will does it become the third phase and become morality.
4) Morality is a conscious act of will
Explain the 3 phases of morality and how universal will coincides with it (4 points)
1) Purpose - the acceptance of consequences for your actions and the assumption of responsibility.
2) Intention and well-being - knowing the end and value of your actions.
3) Goodness and Wickedness - goodness is rational action and universal reason. Wickedness is unreasonable action and opposes universal reason.
4) Universal will - people shape the will, they are universal and their actions on the world are universal.
According to Hegel why does the African not have morality? (1 point)
The African has no consciousness and as morality is the conscious act of will, Africans cannot have morality.
Think community informing individual
Why is Hegel wrong about African morality? (2 points)
1) In African culture, the existence of the individual is the existence of the corporate i.e. “I am because we are and we are therefore I am” and thus conscious of their existence and the “I”
2) African morality is related to society. It is universal and societary, Africans display a conscious act of will.
What 3 phases does Religion move through? Explain them. (3 points)
1) Natural - Spirit still bonded to nature, considered “crude magic”
2) Spiritual individuality - God is recognized as spirit and personal
3) Christianity - God and humanity reconciled/unity established.
According to Hegel what were African religions? (4)
1) Considered natural religion
2) Sorcerers not aware of Higher Being/Power
3) Characterized by fetishisms e.g. worship of the dead
4) Africans had no respect for themselves as only a Higher Being can instill reverence
Higher Beings & Respect
Why is Hegel wrong about African religions? (5 points)
1) Their religion is an ontological experience and a God/Higher Being is the origin and sustains this.
2) Many Africans consider God as the Supreme Being
3) Sorcery or fetishisms actually universal power or force emanating from God
4) Worship of dead - a symbolic gesture/not worship but means of remembrance
5) Africans believe that the person is a self-defining value, the African has respect for others as self-defining persons too, able to see themself in others and their own being - self-consciousness.
