Hegel: On the Unhappy Consciousness By: Christopher P. Satoor, B.A. (Hons)

Hegel states that consciousness is utterly unhappy. The Unhappiness stems from a contradiction that lies at the very heart of consciousness. This contradiction arises because consciousness cannot unite its two sides. The problem arises with the movement of self-consciousness, becoming both Stoicism and Skepticism.   The bondsman is free, but is only free in thought. It gains its inevitable freedom with its ability to think (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007). Although the bondsman has submitted to the will of the lord; and is working for the lord, its essence is still free because the bondsman can locate the being of self-consciousness merely in its thoughts (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007). Hegel states “We are in the presence of self-consciousness in a new shape, a consciousness which, as the infinitude of consciousness or as its own pure movement, is aware of itself as essential being, a being which thinks freely or is a free self-consciousness” (Hegel 197).

The unified concepts of being and thinking represent Stoicism (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007). Stoicism can be identified in having a twofold character, one that is known as the essential-thought as free reaction-, and the latter the un-essential, -actuality freely negated. Hegel explains that we can only be free in regards to the reactions of any such content, however are freedom can only be actualized if there is a negation of such particular content (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) This leads to determining that Stoicism in essence is Skepticism. Skepticism is thus the true realization of what merely Stoicism was, a notion. Skepticism becomes the actual experience of what consists of freedom as thought (Hegel 202). Skepticism is thus, the negation through thought of any particular, which can be presented to consciousness (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) Hegel states “Skepticism, on the other hand, it is a moment of self-consciousness, to which it does not happen that its truth and reality vanish without its knowing how, but which, in its certainty of its freedom, makes this ‘other’ which claims to be real vanish” (Hegel 204). According to Hegel Skepticisms objective reality, is caused to vanish but not just its reality, its relationship to it. Skepticism can be seen as completely contradictory, because such a contradiction emerges from itself internally (Hegel 206). There is a new subsequent form of consciousness, one that brings both contradictory sides together (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) He states “Skepticism’s lack of thought about itself must vanish, because it is in fact one consciousness which contains within itself these two modes. This new form is therefore, one which knows that it is the dual consciousness” (Hegel 206).

What is left, from this problem but an abstract ‘I’ known to Hegel as the un-changing, which contains characteristics of selfsameness, and completely opposed to this, a particular changing determinate ‘I’ (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) To show the tension that has occurred Hegel brings in the example of two small children fighting amongst one another, one child screams A, and in spite of the other, the second child replies by screaming B. The first child then retaliates by screaming B, and the other child screams A and this contradiction is continued, in order to show both children’s their opposition against one another (Hegel 205). This is the problem, in Stoicism self-consciousness is freedom, however in Skepticism, this freedom through the process of negation canceled the other out. The aftermath of this problem resides in a duality where self-consciousness has duplicated itself (Hegel 206). Both sides thus need one another and destroy each other. The duplication mentioned before, becomes thrown and stuck into one identity. The lord and Bondsman which were two separate consciousnesses’ are now one, but they are not unified, and this un-satisfied unity becomes what Hegel calls as the ‘unhappy consciousnesses. The unhappy consciousness according to Hegel sees its other half and lives in the relationship of collapsing into one and falling back into the other, and “they witness this slipping between them” (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007)

Knowing that these two sides are in opposition and nothing can bring them together, the unhappy consciousness needs to somehow reconcile these vital halves, but how? To fix the contradiction, self consciousness needs to connect and unify its two crucial parts, one that is inside of itself and the other, one that is outside itself in doing so the unhappy consciousness will have to reach outside of itself. These two halves are split, the first is known as the Unchangeable, which will be the essential being, the latter will be the Changeable or known as the unessential being (Hegel 208). Both Unchangeable and the Changeable are completely alien to one another and the unhappy consciousness. The consciousness of such a contradiction thus identifies itself with the Changeable half or the unessential nature (Hegel 208). To help aid in the joining of both sides self-consciousness makes up a story to fix the problem of the awkward contradiction at hand.

The Unchangeable or the essential, is known to have characteristics of selfsameness, and gains the notion of a pure internal, unified God; Self-consciousness strictly identifies itself as the changeable or the unessential and impure. Hegel’s reasons for this are as follows. First there is a need for realization that perhaps we might have a pure side or an essential half, which can be identified as a free essence or a soul. However in a sense we are not connected with such an essence, our body stands opposed to such an essential essence; therefore we must search to re-kindle such an essence outside ourselves. This search leads us to identify God as the Universal, and the Unchangeable (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) The following will be addressing why Hegel needs to posit God in order to end the tension, that led up to the unhappy consciousness. What are his reasons and how will this help align self-consciousness with the Universal?

There is one problem that still is at issue. The matter of impurity, because the unhappy consciousness seeks to align itself in the Unchangeable and the essential nature, there must be some comprehension of its need for purification. Hegel wants to identify this early stage with the early beginnings of religion and why we need it. (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) Consciousness must in fact, do acts of kindness, so that it can be united with God. This other half, or the Unchangeable, is still comprehended as a part of its own essence, which means we must seek it out, and reach out to the beyond. However this Unchangeable or essential essence is still a part of us and is a constant cue that the unhappy consciousness cannot be like God. This is the first sign of its sin or the falling away from God. This process means that because consciousness is not God, it is thus God who judges it. In order to free ourselves from such sin we must make up for it, so Hegel wants us to realize that we need to do penance in order to move away from the impurity or sin to be pure (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007).

However there still remains one problem, in order to resolve this struggle, the unchangeable must be able to manifest itself in the Changeable or be seen as changing to end this tension. The unhappy consciousness in frustration realizes it is back to the beginning, both sides are still not united so once again it must reach out, outside itself in hope to gain its unity. The question is what is it reaching out to? Hegel is attempting to show how humans can gain an aspect of the divine but not in a universal essence, but in a human form. This way the unhappy consciousness can gain a certain hope. The hope appears as an individuality of the Unchangeable, which is an incarnation in a particular; this is Christ (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) Nevertheless, the unhappy consciousness must be able to show the resolution in all particular individuals and itself. In order to be happy, there is the arrival of the Holy Spirit which becomes the embodiment, and will of the universal, manifests itself in the Human community. The positing of the Unchangeable is thus, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (Hegel 211). This incarnation or tri-part essence is thus brought into the community through the church. This move by Hegel is to show that the entire community can gain such a universal mind. The positing of Christ or the incarnate, is remains only a hope of unifying ourselves with the Unchangeable, Hegel states, “the hope of becoming one with it must remain a hope for between the hope and its fulfillment there stands precisely the absolute contingency or inflexible indifference which lies in the very assumption of definite form which was the ground for hope” (Hegel 212). This aspect is unknown and unexplainable. The relationship is an external one; this incarnate Unchangeable is thus left with an alien reality as Hegel states, which must be altered into one essence. Christ must become one with such an essence (Hegel 213). This movement of unifying Christ with our own essence has three parts. Consciousness with the incarnate will have a pure consciousness. The second part according to Hegel is a particular individual in the actual world of desire and work, and this is the attempt to make the world divine. The third part is thus the awareness of consciousness as a ‘being-for-self’ This is Hegel’s approach of showing how such particularity can unified into one essence (Hegel 214).

The problem remaining is that the only relationship to Christ we have is through his death, which is an empirical aspect that can be known through Changeable not the Unchangeable. Hegel states that we have thus devoted our search only through its mediator because it has been tainted with an empirical aspect (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) The Unchangeable is supposed to be found, through the very connection of Christ but all that is known is that of the Changeable. According to Hegel “Consciousness will abandon its quest for the Unchangeable individuality as an actual existence, or it will stop trying to hold what has vanished. Only then is it capable of finding individuality in its genuine or universal form” (Hegel 217). This means we must abandon the idea of mediation through though and our feeling, because none of these can unify us with the Unchangeable. It is the empirical world which separates us from the universal essence, so in order to thus overcome this obstacle consciousness must actualize itself in work and desire (Hegel 219). This means that since it is the Changeable world splits us from the universal essence, but through work on the world we make it suitable for the Unchangeable. 

Hegel is implying that if the world can embody this essence, it simply means that the world and the essence must have a necessary relationship with it. The unity that is being searched for can thus be exposed in it. This leads us to believe that inessential beings must have an essential aspect in order to do work for the essential being. We are given the right to change our work into the beyond because the essential being has given us such a right (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) Hegel however leads us to another problem it is God or the Unchangeable that is free, not us we gain our freedom through the Unchangeable. This realization thus means that our individuality is thus deprived of its conscious being; and upon such realization surrenders ourselves to the Unchangeable, thus sacrificing our essence and what little freedom we have. This however seems to unite us with essential essence. This becomes problematic because in denying our selfhood we become inevitably wretched, for we have lost our essence and have become mere nothingness or simply just a particularity (Hegel 223). This feeling of wretchedness is not a total negative aspect but proves that consciousness can have knowledge of such an Unchangeable essence. (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th, 2007) Somehow consciousness must dispose of its particularity and thus needs once again a mediator to help unify itself in a universal. This mediator is another being, a priest. The role of the Priest is to empty out the minds thoughts of particularity and fill it with universal content. The Priest/Minster gives us advice on what is right, what to do and what the universal consist of (Hegel 228). The unhappy consciousness has found a solution through this mediation of the Priest/Minster revealing to the unhappy consciousness its will as the Unchangeable.

In conclusion Hegel uses the very notion of God or the Unchangeable as a solution to fix the tension that had arisen out of Stoicism and skepticism. This tension which couldn’t unify its essence has now found a new purpose unified in the universal. It is in fact Hegel explication of why Human beings need religion because of our own particularity which we thus posit, outside of ourselves and the need is answered by such an essence unified in God/Universal. In positing our will as not that of ours, but of the Unchangeable we act out in working the world, and can thus conceive of our own will of another but not just any other but that of the universal. The unhappy consciousness has thus found a resolution that is thus outside of itself, but can only remain happy by being unified in the universal (Lecture notes from Professor Jim Vernon on October 25th).

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Hegel, Georg. W F., A. V. Miller, and J. N. Findlay. HEGEL's Phenomenology of Spirit. New York: Oxford Univeristy P, 1963. 197-230.