Causal Realism and the Limits of Empiricism: Some Unexpected Insights from Hegel

Hegel’s Pragmatic Critique and Reconstruction of Kant’s System of Principles in theLogicandEncyclopaedia

“…Indeed, Hegel links the Thesis of Singular Cognitive Reference (I:2.1) to the synthetic propositions Kant sought to justify a priori , and to the transcendental unity of apperception. 20 We can now understand several reasons that 15 See Westphal ( 2008aWestphal ( ), (2015b. 16 Alston ( 1986 ).…”

“…59 For detailed critical discussion of Quine's semantics, see Murphey ( 2012 ), Westphal ( 2015c ). 60 See Westphal (2008aWestphal ( , 2009aWestphal ( , 2010Westphal ( -11, 2014aWestphal ( , 2015b. 61 Redding ( 2014 ).…”

Hegel's Pragmatic Critique and Reconstruction of Kant's System of Principles in the 1807Phenomenology of Spirit.

“…Hegel did not understand this crucial feature of Newton's dynamics, but did expose and resolve conceptual stumbling blocks impeding its appreciation. Avoiding realism by recourse to any meta-language runs afoul of the internal problems thwarting Carnap's ‘Empiricism, Semantics, and Ontology’ (Westphal 2015a), of Carnap's (1950, 1-18) explication of ‘explication’ (Westphal 2010-11), and of Hegel's moderate externalisms regarding mental and semantic content (intension) and also regarding cognitive justification.…”