APS Speaker Matthew Delhey - Oct 28 2022

Michael Delhey talk

The Association of Philosophy Students (APS) hosted a talk by U of T graduate student, Matthew Delhey on Friday, October 28, 2022. 

 

Talk title: "Institutions or Interaction? Hegel's Critique of Fichte Reconsidered,"

Abstract: In this talk, I present some of the research coming out of my dissertation, Hegel's Critique of Reciprocity. In particular, I discuss the role of social institutions in Hegel's social and political philosophy and its relation to Fichte's, Hegel's most important German idealist predecessor. I argue that if we wish to take Hegel's institutionalism seriously, then we must revise the standard view that Hegel's critique of Fichte's practical philosophy turns on Fichte's purported "subjectivism" or "individualism." Instead, Hegel's institutionalism tells us that his critique of Fichte ultimately concerns the undue precedence of social immediacy inscribed by Fichte within his theory of social institutions---what I call Fichte's interactionism. I examine three such forms of social immediacy in Fichte's interactionism and argue that Hegel's institutionalist theory of objective spirit solves specific social-theoretical problems arising from each. I conclude by considering some of the implications of Hegel's shift from interactions to institutions for our understanding of the normative function of reciprocal recognition in Hegel's social and political philosophy.

Thanks to everyone who attended! To stay informed about future APS events, be sure to follow them on instagram @utsc_aps