The Reception of the Ancient Greek Philosophy in G. W. F. Hegel in the Context of Philhellenism

Abstract

This article attempts to establish a connection between 19th century philhellenism and the reception of ancient Greek philosophy by Hegel as an outstanding representative of German idealism. The factual basis of this comparative analysis is that this chapter of philosophical-historical appropriation in the German-speaking world owes its origin and its concrete form to an era in which the multifaceted and comprehensive cultural phenomenon of philhellenism experienced its boom. In this respect, parallels and similarities between philosophical reception and the general, practically superordinate tendencies of philhellenism can therefore emerge. Hegel’s reconstruction of Greece’s philosophical past is of particular importance in that it is a fundamentally systematic account that – especially with regard to relevant political views – remains committed to the idea of progress that has been decisive since the Enlightenment, while the German philosopher also seeks to justify it in concrete terms.