Death, Hegel, and Kojève

Abstract

Stemming from a reading of Hegel’s account of the struggle for recognition in the Phenomenology of Spirit, Kojève argued that death is the central notion of Hegel’s philosophy. I will discuss several themes in relation to this claim of Kojève’s interpretation of Hegel, namely the themes of freedom, individuality, and historicity. I will also discuss Kojève’s reading that Hegel rejects both all conceptions of the afterlife, and too the belief in the afterlife as a manifestation of the “unhappy consciousness”. I will point out flaws of Kojève’s interpretation throughout.

Keywords

• hegel
• kojève
• death
• freedom
• individuality
• historicity
• afterlife