The Dialectical Biologist, circa 1890: John Dewey and the Oxford Hegelians

According to Beiser, Hegel's solution was to interpret the absolute as a universal organism: biological development is self-differentiation, and the subjective and objective can be seen as "different degrees of organization" in the development of the absolute. [...]the opposition betw...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the history of philosophy 2014-10, Vol.52 (4), p.747-777
Main Author: Pearce, Trevor
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biology
Ethics
Evolution
Philosophers
Philosophy
Pragmatism
Self concept
Spencer, Herbert (1820-1903)
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Summary:According to Beiser, Hegel's solution was to interpret the absolute as a universal organism: biological development is self-differentiation, and the subjective and objective can be seen as "different degrees of organization" in the development of the absolute. [...]the opposition between them is necessary, but they are ultimately only aspects of a single whole.93 Dewey can be interpreted as offering an analogous solution. "95 But although this analysis of a whole into its aspects is vital to the process of adjustment or reconstruction, when this process-whether ethical reflection or scientific inquiry-comes to a close, we are again left with what is primary: simply living. [...]Hegel and Dewey shared a commitment to a kind of developmental metaphysics.96 All this is quite speculative, and in the end Dewey's dialectical naturalism may not be defensible in its current form.
ISSN:0022-5053
1538-4586
1538-4586
DOI:10.1353/hph.2014.0094