[Xmca-l] Re: Hegel's notion of The Notion

[Alfredo Jornet Gil]

Greg, Andy, 
thanks for making Hegel more accessible to all of us not so familiar. Andy, can you add a link to the section you mention, I could not find it following the link Greg provided or the index. Thanks, 
Alfredo
________________________________________
From: xmca-l-bounces@mailman.ucsd.edu <xmca-l-bounces@mailman.ucsd.edu> on behalf of Andy Blunden <ablunden@mira.net>
Sent: 11 May 2017 17:48
To: Greg Thompson; xmca-l@ucsd.edu
Subject: [Xmca-l] Re: Hegel's notion of The Notion

Concepts are first of all things which exist; because they
exist, the mind is capable of grasping them, in fact, they
are exactly the way the mind grasps the world
(etymologically concept = to grasp). The way they exist is
in human activity and the artifacts we use in that activity.
Since you have made a start on this Greg, I have to say that
I think you need this and also the section to follow called
"The Subjective Notion" to get a decent picture.

Andy

------------------------------------------------------------
Andy Blunden
http://home.mira.net/~andy
http://www.brill.com/products/book/origins-collective-decision-making

On 12/05/2017 1:40 AM, Greg Thompson wrote:
> ​Okay Andy, I've started into the Hegel text that you
> suggested (I don't think you truly appreciate how slow of
> a reader I am! BTW, the text Andy shared can be found
> here:
> https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/hegel/works/hl/hlnotion.htm),
> and I came across this notion of The Notion by Hegel in
> Section 1279:
>
> "Now although it is true that the Notion is to be
> regarded, not merely as a subjective presupposition but as
> the /absolute foundation/, yet it can be so only in so far
> as it has /made/ itself the foundation. Abstract immediacy
> is no doubt a /first/; yet in so far as it is abstract it
> is, on the contrary mediated, and therefore if it is to be
> grasped in its truth its foundation must first be sought.
> Hence this foundation, though indeed an immediate, must
> have made itself immediate through the sublation of
> mediation."​
>
> This seems core to the kind of realism that Hegel is
> building up (a realism of concepts) and, I think, remains
> a revolutionary conception today. The idea here seems to
> be that the Notion is not a "subjective presupposition"
> but is rather much more real than that. But, I guess I'm
> wondering HOW can this be?
>
> There are multiple objections, but perhaps the biggest
> objection comes from 20th century social science's
> preoccupation with social construction. In this tradition,
> concepts are things held in the head, subjective and maybe
> also intersubjective, but always mediated (and some might
> say "derivative"). Hegel seems to be offering a much
> different take - one in which concepts are much more
> primary. Am I right here?
>
> And, what is this business about the "sublation of
> mediation"? (and where does this last bit jibe with CHAT?
> Many people in CHAT speak of mediation but I don't recall
> anyone speaking of the "sublation of mediation").
>
> Any help with this text would be appreciated.
>
> (and this is closely related to "the stuff of words" but I
> still felt that this needed a new thread.).
>
> -greg
>
> --
> Gregory A. Thompson, Ph.D.
> Assistant Professor
> Department of Anthropology
> 880 Spencer W. Kimball Tower
> Brigham Young University
> Provo, UT 84602
> http://byu.academia.edu/GregoryThompson