Hegel only published five books in his lifetime, and among them the Phenomenology of Spirit emerges as the most important but also perhaps the most difficult and complex. In this book Ludwig Siep follows the path from Hegel's early writings on religion, love and spirit to the milestones of his 'Jena period'. He shows how the themes of the Phenomenology first appeared in an earlier work, The Difference between Fichte's and Schelling's Systems of Philosophy, and closely examines the direction which Hegel's thought took as he attempted to think through the possibility of a complete system of philosophy. The themes encompassed by the Phenomenology – anti-dualistic epistemology, autonomy, historicality, the sociality of reason – are thoroughly discussed in Siep's subtle and elegantly argued assessment, which appears here in English for the first time. It will be of great interest to all readers studying Hegel's thought.

Ludwig Siep, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Germany

Ludwig Siep is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster, Germany. He was co-editor, with Walter Jaeschke, of the yearbook Hegel-Studien (Hegel Studies) between 2003 and 2012, and his most recent publications include Aktualität und Grenzen der Praktischen Philosophie Hegels (2010).