Abstract

In the midst of a recrudescence of serious interest in the philosophy of Hegel, Lauer’s scholarly, detailed and careful "reading" of Hegel’s most difficult work is a highly valuable and useful contribution to the literature. Aside from conscientious, reasonably impartial accounts of the central themes of the Phenomenology, key elements in the interpretations and commentaries of the major writers who have tackled Hegel’s profound description of the forms of consciousness and the processes of knowing are artfully interwoven in Lauer’s exposition. Lauer is faithful to the text of the Phenomenology and has no particular metaphysical ax to grind.