The Citizen of the European Union from a Hegelian Perspective

Abstract

The “disappearance of ethical life” that characterizes the transition from family into civil society in Hegel’s Philosophy of Right must be followed by a second step: ethical life has to be restored in the good life of the state. According to Hegel, this movement is repeated at international level: at the level of world history, the ethical organism of the state seems, once again, is subjected to a process that can be characterized as “disappearance of ethical life.” From a contemporary point of view we might conclude that in this repetition the “disappearance of ethical life” has to be overcome by the development of a just international order. Under current conditions, however, the double movement needed for the “sublation” or supersession of the “disappearance of ethical life” manifests itself (at least in Europe) as a double crisis: at national level the sublation seems to fail, resulting in a distrust of national government; at international (European) level the sublation seems to fail, resulting in a distrust of European institutions. The essay seeks to show how a revised account of conditions for sublating the “disappearance of ethical life” can contribute to a better understanding of the actual double crisis at the national and international level mentioned above.