Hegel on Nature in Politics: An Introduction

In recent years, the ancient concept of second nature has become the focus of a growing volume of Hegel-related work in ethics, social philosophy, philosophy of mind, and action theory. And for good reason: second nature allows us to think across, and seeks to bridge, fundamental antagonisms that have haunted modern philosophy since its inception – between the realm of law and the realm of reasons, necessity and freedom, inclination and duty. In social philosophy, in particular, second nature holds the promise of reconciling the painful modern rupture between the individual and her political community, reviving the goods and comforts of what have been called the freedoms of the ancients in the context of a modern Sittlichkeit .