Prof. Robert Brandom - Understanding the Object/Property Structure in Terms of Negation

Edinburgh University Philosophy Society Lecture Series 2020/21 Talk Date: 21/1/2021 Speaker: Professor Robert Brandom, University of Pittsburgh Title: An Introduction to Hegelian Logic: Understanding the Object/Property Structure in Terms of Negation Handout: Abstract: In this talk, I look in some detail at the fine structure of Hegelian negation—and at its metaphysical consequences—when Hegel first introduces it, in the second chapter of the Phenomenology (presenting ideas corresponding to the transition from Sache to Dinge in the Science of Logic). These are only the first baby steps—soon to be aufgehoben—in his intricate story. But the structure revealed is both interesting in its own right, and a cautionary tale for any readers tempted by univocal readings of such central Hegelian formulae as “the negation of the negation,“ and “identity through difference.“ I will be particularly concerne