John McTaggart 1910
Source: A Commentary on Hegel’s Logic by John McTaggart Ellis McTaggart, Doctor in Letters, Fellow and Lecturer of Trinity College in Cambridge, Fellow of the British Academy, Cambridge: at the University Press. 1910;
Transcribed: by Andy Blunden.
1. Object of this book
2. Previous writers on the same subject
3. Relative authority of the Greater Logic and the
4. Terminology adopted in this hook
5. Errors of Hegel concerning. the dialectic method. He exaggerates the objectivity of the dialectic process
6. And also its comprehensiveness
7. Errors in particular transitions-sometimes caused by his failure to confine the process to the existent
8. Sometime:, by his desire to include conceptions of importance in science
9. Sometimes by confusion between categories and the concrete states after which they are named
10. Errors in Studies in the Hegelian Dialectic (a) as to the transcendental character of the process
11. (b) As to the change in method in the later categories
12. The same continued
13. (c) As to the relation between a Synthesis and the next Thesis
14. Divisions of Quality
15. I. Being. A. Being
16. B. Nothing
17. C. Becoming
18. Hegel’s conception of Becoming does not involve change
19. But the name suggests change, and is therefore misleading
20. Alterations in names of categories suggested
21. II. Being Determinate. A. Being Determinate as Such. (a) Being Determinate in General
22. (b) Quality
23. (c) Something
24. Are the divisions of A. superfluous
25. Is the introduction of Plurality justified ?
26. B. Finitude. (a) Something and an Other
27. (b) Determination, Modification, and Limit
28. (c) Finitude
29. The divisions within (b) are unjustified
30. The Ought and the Barrier in Finitude
31. C. Infinity
32. (a) Infinity in General
33. (b) Reciprocal Determination of the Finite and Infinite
34. (c) Affirmative Infinity
35. The treatment of Finitude and Infinity in the Encyclopaedia,
36. The same continued
37. III. Being for Self. A. Being for Self as Such. (a) Being Determinate and Being for Self
38. (b) Being for One
39. (c) One. The divisions of A. are unjustified.
40. B. The One and the Many. (a) The One in Itself
41. (b) The One and the Void
42. (c) Many Ones
43. C. Repulsion and Attraction. (a) Exclusion of the One
44. (b) The one One of Attraction
45. (c) The Rela tion of Repulsion and Attraction
46. Transition to Quantity
47. Divisions of Quantity
48. Hegel’s knowledge of mathematics. The bearing of this question on the dialectic
49. I. (Undivided) Quantity. — A. Pure Quantity
50. B. Continuous and Discrete Magnitude
51. Defects of this category
52. C. Limitation of Quantity
53. II. Quantum. A. -Number
54. Possibly all the Ones taken together are finite in number. Hegel ignores this possibility, but it does not affect his argument
55. The relation of Quantum and Limit
56. B. Extensive and Intensive Quantum. (a) Their Difference
57. (b) Identity of Extensive and Intensive Magnitude. Are these on a level, or is Intensive Magnitude higher?
58. The latter view seems wore probable
59. The instability of Quanta
60. (c) The Alteration of Quantum
61. C. The Quantitative Infinity. (a) Its Notion
62. (b) The Quantitative Infinite Progress
63. An objection discussed
64. (c) The Infinity of Quantum
65. Relations between Quality and Quantity
66. III. The Quantitative Ratio
67. A. The Direct Ratio.
68. B. The Ratio
69. C. The Ratio of Powers
70. The transition to C. is unjustifiable
71. And the whole of III. is unjustifiable for more general
72. Suggested reconstruction
73. The treatment of Quantity in the Encyclopaedia
74. Divisions of Measure
75. Criticism of the transition from Quantity
76. The same continued
77. Possible reasons for the error
78. I. The Quantity. A. The Specific Quantum
79. B. Specifying Measure. (a) The Rule
80. (b) The Specifying Measure
81. Here anew conception of Measure is introduced illegitimately
82. (c) Relation of both Sides as Qualities
83. C. Being for Self in Measure
84. II. Real Measure. A. The Relation, of Stable Measures
85. (a) Union of two Measures
86. (b) Measure as a Series of Measure Relations
87. (c) Elective Affinity
88. B. Nodal Line of Measure Relations. Here we return to the conception of Measure abandoned in I. B. (b)
89. And do so by an illegitimate transition
90. C. The Measureless
91. III. The Becoming of Essence. A. The Absolute Indifference
92. B. Indifference as Inverse Relation of its Factors
93. C. Transition to Essence
94. The treatment of Measure in the Encyclopaedia
95. Divisions of Essence
96. Transition to Essence
97. The name Appearance may be misleading
98. What is meant by the immediacy of Appearance?
99. The name Essence is ambiguous
100. Show. A. The Essential and Unessential
101. Is the retention of Plurality at this point justifiable ?
102. The same continued
103. Criticism of the transition to the next category
104. B. Show
105. C. Reflection. (a) Positing Reflection
106. (b) External Reflection
107. (c) Determining Reflection
108. II The Essentialities or Determinations of Reflection. A.
109. Hegel’s treatment of the Law of identity
110. But this Law is not specially connected with Hegel’s category of Identity .
111. B. Difference. (a) Absolute Difference
112. (b) Variety
113. Suggested alteration of argument
114. Hegel’s treatment of Qualities and Relations requires enlargement
115. Hegel’s treatment of the Principle of the Identity of Indiscernibles
116. (c) Opposition
117. Criticism of the category of Opposition
118. C. Contradiction
119. Suggested reconstruction of this category
120. Hegel’s treatment of the Law of Excluded Middle
121. III Ground. A. Absolute Ground. (a) Form and Essence
122. (b) Form and Matter
123. (c) Form and Content
124. B. Determined Ground. (a) Formal Ground
125. (b) Ground
126. The possibility of sophistry in Ground
127. (c) Complete Ground
128. C. Condition. (a) The Relatively Unconditioned
129. (b) he Absolutely Unconditioned
130. (c) Transition of the Fact into Existence.
131. Suggested reconstruction of Ground
132. Divisions of Appearance.
133. I. Existence
134. A. The Thing and its Properties
135. (a) The Thing in itself and Existence
136. (b) Property
137. (c) The Reciprocal Action of Things
138. B. The Constitution of the Thing out of Matters
139. C. The Dissolution of the Thing
140. Criticism of the categories of Existence
141. II. Appearance. A. The Law of Appearance
142. B. The World of Appearance and the World in itself
143. C. The Dissolution of Appearance
144. III Essential Relation. A. The Relation of Whole and Parts
145. The same continued
146. B. The Relation of Force and its Manifestation. (a) The Conditionedness of Force
147. (b) The Solicitation, of Force
148. (c) The Infinity of Force
149. Criticism of the divisions of B.
150. Suggested reconstruction
151. C. The Relation of Inner and Outer
Note on the Difference between the Greater Logic and the Encyclopaedia in the first two divisions of Essence
152. Table of the categories according to the Greater Logic and the Encyclopaedia
153. Account of the differences
154. The same continued
155. Divisions of Actuality
156. I. The Absolute. A. The Exposition of the Absolute
157. Criticism of the conception of the Absolute
158. B. The Absolute Attribute
159. Criticism of this category
160. C. The Modus of the Absolute
161. II. Actuality
162. A. Contingency, or Formal Actuality, Possibility, and Necessity
163. The same continued
164. B. Relative Necessity, or Real Actuality, Possibility, and Necessity .
165. C. Absolute Necessity
166. III The Absolute Relation. A. The Relation of Substantiality
167. Suggested reconstruction of the argument by which Substance is reached
168. Hegel’s remarks on the philosophy of Spinoza
169. B. The Relation of Causality. (a) Formal Causality
170. The transition to Formal Causality is not justifiable
171. (b) Determined Causality
172. Hegel unduly ignores the differences between Formal and Determined Causality
173. He attempts to remove one such difference by asserting the identity of Cause and Effect. Criticism of this
174. The same continued
175. The same continued
176. The treatment of Causality in the Encyclopaedia
177. The Infinite Series of Causes and Effects
178. (c) Action and Reaction
179. C. Reciprocity
180. The infinity ascribed by Hegel to Reciprocity
181. The treatment of Actuality in the Encyclopaedia
182. Divisions of Subjectivity
183. The significance of the nomenclature in Subjectivity
184. The same continued
185. Hegel’s assertion that Freedom is the Truth of Necessity
186. I. The Notion. A. The Universal Notion
187. Suggested reconstruction of the argument
188. The same continued
189. B. The Particular Notion
190. The same continued
191. C. The Individual
192. II. The Judgment. A. The Judgment of Inherence. (a) The Positive Judgment
193. Transition to the next category
194. Criticism of the transition
195. (b) The Negative Judgment
196. (c) The Infinite Judgment
197. The same continued
198. B. The Judgment of Subsumption
199. The same continued
200. (a) The Singular Judgment
201. (b) The Particular Judgment
202. Transition to the next category
203. (c) The Universal Judgment
204. C. The Judgment of Necessity
205. (a) The Categorical Judgment
206. (b) The Hypothetical Judgment
207. (c) The Disjunctive Judgment .
208. Transition to the next category
209. D. The Judgment of the Notion. (a) The Assertoric Judgment
210. (b) The Problematic Judgment
211. (c) The Apodictic Judgment
212. Criticism of the Judgment of the Notion
213. The same continued
214. III. The Syllogism. A. The Qualitative Syllogism. (a) First Figure
215. The first defect found by Hegel in this category
216. The second defect
217. (b) Second Figure
218. (c) Third Figure
219. (d) Fourth Figure
220. Criticism of the Second and Third Figures
221. Suggested reconstruction
222. B. The Syllogism of Reflection. (a) The Syllogism of Allness
223. (b) The Syllogism of Induction
224. (c) The Syllogism of Analogy
225. Transition to the next category
226. Criticism of the Syllogism of Reflection.
227. C. The Syllogism of Necessity. (a) The Categorical Syllogism
228. (b) The Hypothetical Syllogism
229. (c) The Disjunctive Syllogism .
230. The same continued
231. Hegel’s conception of the Self-Differentiating Notion
232. Divisions of Objectivity .
233. Significance of the term Objectivity
234. Transition from Subjectivity
235. Proposed amendment of the transition
236. I. Mechanism. A. The Mechanical Object
237. B. The Mechanical Process
238. (a) The Formal Mechanical Process
239. (b) The Real Mechanical Process
240. (c) The Product of the Mechanical Process
241. C. The Absolute Mechanism. (a) The Centre
242. The example given by Hegel is misleading
243. The transition to Chemism in the Encyclopaedia
244. (b) The Law
245. (e) Transition from Mechanism
246. II. Chemism. A. The Chemical Object
247. B. The Chemical Process
248. Transition to the next category
249. Criticism of this transition
250. C. Transition from Chemism
251. Is there more than one Chemical Notion?
252. III. Teleology
253. The same continued
254. The same continued
255. The terms End and Means are misleading
256. Am there more Ends than one 1
257. A. The Subjective End
258. B. The Means
259. The first argument for the transition to the next category
260. The second argument for the transition
261. C. The Realised End
262. Divisions of the Idea
263. Transition from Objectivity
264. I. Life
265. Hegel’s view that there are many Organisms
266. His view that the Body is an inadequate manifestation of the Seele
267. A. The Living Individual
268. B. The Life-Process
269. C. The Kind
270. Criticism of this category
271. The inadequacy of the manifestation is shown in Propagation and Death
272. Which also provide the escape from this inadequacy
273. The same continued
274. The same continued
275. II. The Idea of Cognition
276. The same continued
277. Criticism of this category
278. The same continued
279. A. The Idea of the True
280. The same continued
281. (a) Analytic Cognition. (b) Synthetic Cognition. Criticism of these categories
282. The transition to the Idea of the Good can be made without them
283. The transition further considered
284. B. The Idea of the Good
285. Criticism of this category
286. Hegel regards this category as higher than the Idea of the True
287. And as involving the complete goodness of the universe
288. Transition to the Absolute Idea
289. The same continued
290. III. The Absolute Idea
291. The same continued
292. The same continued
293. The same continued
294. This is the final category. The proof of this
295. Is the Absolute Idea exemplified in any concrete state known to us?
296. Conclusion