The Accessible Hegel Paperback – January 1, 2005

This is one of the finest books on Hegel. Presented as a beginner's book, it goes much further into the master's work than any beginner's book usually does. Hegel's central ideas are introduced and cogently explained in clear language. What is more, they are explained briefly without a lot of footnotes and verbiage.One of the best aspects of Fox's approach is his respect for Hegel. In his introduction he makes it quite clear that he's not one of those scandalous writers who, after a thousand mind-numbing chapters on Hegel, then (probably in order to maintain their standing in the utterly corrupt environment of modern academic philosophy) come down like a ton of bricks on the philosopher himself, presenting him either as some stuffy ponderous academic heavyweight out of touch with reality, or, even more preposterously, a raging champion of totalitarianism and proto-Nazi.Other recommended books on Hegel include Leonard Wheat's magnum opus "Hegel's Undiscovered Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis Dialectics" - even though Wheat does denigrate Hegel in his concluding sections, also presenting him as a closet atheist, which, for all Wheat's arguing, is not a strong thesis. Nevertheless, Wheat's masterly book is written so anyone can understand it, and the central and most important ideas of Hegel are dealt with in unparalleled clarity.Peter Singer's excellent work "Hegel: A Very Short Introduction" is also a must have, particularly for beginners. This work is also notable since it is written by an ardent left-winger and atheist, the kind of person who normally grossly misrepresents Hegel and other German Idealists.And top of the list, but only for advanced readers in Idealism, I recommend Glenn Magee's "Hegel and the Hermetic Tradition," the single greatest book ever written on Hegel.

"The Accessible Hegel" admirably achieves what its title states it wants to achieve: making Hegel accessible to those of us who know little or nothing of Hegel. Anyone who wants to understand Western philosophy from the 19th Century to the present must have an adequate understanding of Hegel, who is probably the greatest philosopher of the 19th Century (although Kierkegaard, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche are obviously enormously important also). Unfortunately for those of us who do not have a Ph.D. in philosophy, Hegel is very, very difficult. Anyone who attempts to understand Hegel is going to need help, and there are, fortunately, a number of useful books available. I've read several of these books, and Michael Fox's "The Accessible Hegel" might be the most helpful introduction to Hegel. Fox writes very well. This book is easy to read and does an outstanding job of taking very difficult ideas and making them comprehensible for the average reader. Indeed, even though this book is by no means an easy read, I believe that it serves as an excellent introduction for anyone who does not have extensive knowledge of philosophy. Although it is clear that Fox admires Hegel, he also identifies many of Hegel's ideas that are no longer useful, and he does an excellent job of summarizing the views of Hegel's critics. In addition, Fox includes very useful information about the Hegelian philosophers who were inspired by Hegel's voluminous writings. Fox gives the reader a fair, but critical reading of Hegel, pointing out those ideas which continue to influence Western philosophy. I found Fox's discussion about what Hegel meant by "dialectic" to be very useful. Fox argues convincingly that Hegel was a process philosopher, an insight I found particularly useful because I have some familiarity with process philosophers and theologians. Certainly, approaching Hegel as a process philosopher provides an important key to understanding him. Finally, Fox's discussions about Hegel's difficult ideas about religion and the state are clear and very helpful. If you have a deep passion to understand what the greatest Western thinkers have to teach us, understanding Hegel and appreciating his influence are indispensable. "The Accessible Hegel" would be an excellent guide to anyone who is trying to comprehend this intellectual giant. I strongly recommend this book.

Hegel is infamously difficult to read and understand. This book is a succinct and clear guide to interpreting Hegel. It is well written, and although succinct, it does not oversimplify. I read this book alongside Hegel's The Phenomenology of Spirit, and this book greatly improved my understanding and appreciation of Hegel's line of thought. Without this book I may or may not have plodded on to finish reading Hegel, but I certainly would have gotten much less out of the Phenomenology. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in unlocking Hegel. It is succinct and well written without oversimplification.

This book provides an accurate account of what Hegel was (and was not) all about as a philosopher. While it doesn’t get into any of the finer details of his works, it does offer a good well-rounded synopsis of Hegel’s basic ideas and overall message or “spirit” as a post-Kantian Christian (i.e. universal) thinker.Highly recommended for anyone not yet familiar with Hegelian philosophy.

“You cannot step into the same river twice.” There is no static existence only an eternal becoming and its consequences.Highly recommend for those willing entertain those thoughts.

My knowledge of Hegel primarily came from secondary sources, most of which didn't think much of him. The book helped me get a little better grasp on his thought without wading through his prose.

This book truly presents Hegel in an accesible way. The genius of Hegel shines from cover to cover thanks to the able guidance provided by professor Fox. This book is a valious aid for anyone wishing to explore Hegel's mind.

I was looking for a relatively easy (hah!) explanation of the Hegelian dialectic since it kept popping up over and over in so many other things that I read. This book perfectly fit that need. Worth the price for the chapter on dialectic alone.