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Section 323

325 of 362 sections in Elements of the Philosophy of Right by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

Original German

323 Im Daseyn erscheint so diese negative Beziehung des Staates auf sich, als Beziehung eines Andern auf ein Anderes, und als ob das Negative ein Aeußerliches wäre. Die Existenz dieser negativen Beziehung hat darum die Gestalt eines Geschehens und der Verwickelung mit zufälligen Begebenheiten, die von Außen kommen. Aber sie ist sein höchstes eigenes Moment, — seine wirkliche Unendlichkeit als die Idealität alles Endlichen in ihm, — die Seite, worin die Substanz als die absolute Macht gegen alles Einzelne und Besondere, gegen das Leben, Eigenthum und dessen Rechte, wie gegen die weiteren Kreise, die Nichtigkeit derselben zum Daseyn und Bewußtseyn bringt.

Musean translation

Machine-assisted Musean translation made directly from Hegel's German in the Berlin Nicolai first edition, dated 1821. Complete preface, introduction and sections 1–360, including the author's remarks and notes; no later Gans additions.

323 In existence this negative relation of the state to itself thus appears as the relation of one other to another, and as if the negative were something external. The existence of this negative relation therefore has the shape of an occurrence and of entanglement with contingent events that come from outside. But it is the state's highest own moment—its actual infinity as the ideality of everything finite in it—the side in which substance, as the absolute power over everything single and particular, over life, property and its rights, as over the wider circles, brings the nothingness of these into existence and consciousness.

Plain English translation

Independent machine-assisted Plain English translation made directly from the German first-edition source, not from the Musean edition or an existing English translation. Complete preface, introduction and sections 1–360 with the author's remarks and notes.

323 In existence, then, this negative relation of the state to itself appears as the relation of one other to another other, as if the negative were something external. So the existence of this negative relation takes the shape of something that happens, and of entanglement with chance events that come from outside. But it is the state's own highest moment. It is its actual infinity, as the ideality of everything finite in it. It is the side in which the substance, as the absolute power over everything individual and particular, over life, property and its rights, and over the wider circles, brings home their nothingness into existence and consciousness.

About this section

Section 323 is part of Elements of the Philosophy of Right by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. This page sets the German original beside 2 direct-source translations, so any line can be checked against the source. It is section 325 of 362 in the work, which is kept in the European tradition.

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