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Section 92

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

Original German

92 Weil der Wille, nur insofern er Daseyn hat, Idee oder wirklich frey und das Daseyn, in welches er sich gelegt hat, Seyn der Freyheit ist, so zerstört Gewalt oder Zwang in ihrem Begriff sich unmittelbar selbst, als Aeußerung eines Willens, welche die Aeußerung oder Daseyn eines Willens aufhebt. Gewalt oder Zwang ist daher, abstract genommen, unrechtlich.

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.

92 Because the will is Idea, or actually free, only insofar as it has existence, and because the existence into which it has placed itself is the being of freedom, force or compulsion destroys itself immediately in its concept, as the expression of a will that cancels the expression or existence of a will. Force or compulsion, taken abstractly, is therefore contrary to right.

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.

92 The will is the Idea, or actually free, only insofar as it has an existence. The existence into which it has placed itself is the being of freedom. For this reason, force or coercion immediately destroys itself in its own concept: it expresses a will by canceling the expression or existence of a will. Taken abstractly, force or coercion is therefore wrongful.

About this section

Section 92 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 94 of 362 in the work, which is kept in the European tradition.

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