Hegel’s detailed analysis of subjective religion and his forceful rejection of the movement in his own political environment to deny civil liberties to Jewish citizens give us the conceptual tools to respond to our contemporary cases of religious extremism without violating the value of the autonomy and inherent worth of the thinking person that fanaticism tramples. This paper first addresses Hegel’s analysis of fanaticism, demonstrating that its rejection of the order of existing structures in favor of an abstract ideal entails (...) the Hegelian concept of spirit. When spirit’s implications are explored, it is evident that immediate religious certainty has the potential to elevate its adherents to thinking consciousness and therefore have the potential to follow its internal dialectics to the point where its convictions correspond with the major ethical principles upheld by modern states. Given the political freedom to explore their own latent truths and inconsistencies, subjective, even fanatical, religious consciousness can strengthen the state by its independent verification of the ideals embodied in the political community. In the meantime, autonomous reflection should be encouraged through free religious expression, including of religious views that run counter to the objective order of the state. However, any destructive attacks on this order must be confronted and stopped. These principles allow us to respond to the current Syrian refugee crisis, the controversy regarding municipal bans on burkinis in France, and violent, religiously-inspired terrorist attacks with clarity and consistency. (shrink)

Teaching business ethics offers an opportunity to encourage students to use ethical theory to develop critical thinking skills and to use these skills to practice creative, ethical problem solving that will serve them well in the course of their professional lives. In the first part of this article, I detail how the disciplined use of ethical theory not only develops students’ moral perceptions but also gives them the conceptual tools to engage in detailed, innovative analysis. In the second section of (...) the article, I use Nike’s “green rubber” dilemma to illustrate how students can use ethical theories to construct analyses of business challenges and design innovative solutions that further the interests of diverse stakeholders. In the last section, I describe class exercises and assignments that both model detailed, creative problem solving and direct students to practice these cognitive skills on their own. (shrink)

Quante’s intent is to open a dialogue between Hegel scholars and analytic philosophers that proves valuable for both areas of study. He succeeds on a number of levels. Hegel scholars working in practical philosophy will be intrigued by his argument that §§104–13 of Philosophy of Right have an internally consistent structure that has been missed previously because they have not been understood as addressing action theory. Since scholars have paid little attention to Hegel’s subjective will as an action theory, Quante’s (...) burden is not to situate his position within current scholarship, but rather to defend his thesis that these sections can be read as an action theory that can stand on its own without presupposing Hegel’s system. He meets this burden but acknowledges that it is problematic to address any Hegelian concept apart from its placement and role in the system, and that his analysis serves only as a study of the questions inherent in action theory and not as a commentary on this part of the Philosophy of Right. However, while Quante treats these sections as an action theory that does not depend upon Hegel’s larger metaphysical commitments, he does not treat the concepts with which he works in abstraction, but sensitively employs Hegel’s logical works to elucidate their structure. (shrink)