Jesus G Lopez Lozano 05/06/14

Jgl679 GOV 335M

Prompt 4 Professor Gregg

1
Love for family and economic exchanges for capitalist markets; the required attitudes?
Hegel argues in the Philosophy of Right that there are three spheres that
characterize modern society, that of the Family, Civil Society and the State. Each of these
spheres include different interactions, practices and values, but as a person advances from
one sphere to the other they become closer to the freedom of the will, which is in Hegels
eyes the ultimate goal and what humans are in the world for. Each of the spheres have
certain languages and interactions that are individual for them and each person must
strive to learn and know how to communicate and speak the language effectively in order
to develop oneself in said sphere and be free in them. In his analysis of the Philosophy of
Right, Honneth believes that these interactions are constantly been practiced and learned
by people, and it is after they have properly mastered them that they attain true freedom.
To properly understand Honneths argument of Hegels view on modern society one must
analyze the interactions in each sphere.

Family according to Hegel is a place where a person attains its self-consciousness
through a relationship with another person of the opposite sex. It is here that a person
gives the first step towards the goal of freedom of the will. It is where unity and emotion
brings a sense of interdependence. Yet this interdependence communicates through the
language of mutual affection and sentiment, where the end is to know ones self as the
unity of myself with another and of the other with me (Hegel, 158). To be able to reach
this mutual interdependence, that is, to form a family in is basic notions, one must be able
Jesus G Lopez Lozano 05/06/14
Jgl679 GOV 335M
Prompt 4 Professor Gregg

2
to speak the language necessary to do so, because if one does not have the ability to
communicate with the same objective then it will present impossible to be able to be free
at this level. As Honneth argues in his analysis of Hegel, [] participation in family life
require[s] learning a language game marked by effect (Honneth, 74). It is the language
of love that gives a person the ability to form a family. As easy as this may sound, it is
not an easy task, which is why people who desire to form a family only do so at the
developed age of middle 20s. Learning that [t]he first moment in love is that I do not
wish to be an independent person in my own right and that, if I were, I would feel
deficient and incomplete (Hegel, 158) is a mindset that is not apparent at first. The
language of love requires certain aspects; commitment, faith, tenderness, comprehension,
care, and above all respect. These qualities are those that a person must strive to have in
order to be ready to commit to a family. A person that values the language of love will be
able to understand when someone is passing through a difficult time and be there to help,
not disregard and wave off as some strange attitude. Another way to understand the way
that the language of love works is by comparing it to the way that people used to marry in
the middle ages, when kingdoms prevailed. At this point in time people married and
decided to form a family because of political benefits and agreements between nations
that would form to seal an alliance. This form of family does not speak the language of
love, this is why many of these families had troubles in the household that came in the
form of mistress and dominance from one side or another. The lack of the values created
a vertical dependence rather than interdependence. The language of mutual love grows
from the feeling that without the other person one would not be able to participate in the
civil society and the world with enough motivation and strength to be free. One must be
Jesus G Lopez Lozano 05/06/14
Jgl679 GOV 335M
Prompt 4 Professor Gregg

3
willing to have moments where total dedication is placed on the family, and when
children arrive it is the duty of the family to provide them with food and a household that
will see them grow. Further it is the responsibility of the family to provide them with
education. One can understand the practices appropriate for the family in two ways, the
care and love of children and their bringing up and the respect and love towards the
person one chooses to stand beside them forever.

The market is a completely different sphere where the interactions happen because of the
necessity to satisfy a need. Here economic exchanges prevail where goods are produced
and shared with two ends; to be compensated or to obtain something. As Hegel states, In
civil society, each individual is his own end and all else means nothing to him. But he
cannot accomplish the full extend of his ends without reference to others; these others are
therefore means to an end of the particular person (Hegel, 182). It can be understood
from this that a market is formed where for one to gain satisfaction he must
simultaneously satisfy the welfare of others. It is interesting to note that the practices that
are used in the market are all interconnected and build on each other. The very core
practice of the market involves the exchange of economic goods, but in order to be able
to do so there first must be a production of said economic goods, which are fruits of labor
produced by those agents that decide to enter the sphere of civil society. Furthermore,
once these exchanges start to flourish the next step towards a sustainable market involves
mutually beneficial agreements that aim to provide a constant out stream and inflow of
goods. Efficiency and productivity are two key aspects that are crucial in the language of
Jesus G Lopez Lozano 05/06/14
Jgl679 GOV 335M
Prompt 4 Professor Gregg

4
the market for it to be economically profitable and thus fruitful for the agents involved.
To put things in context, one example that brings all of these practices together is that of
a producer of computers. For this agent to be productive in the market it is important that
he manufactures the product at a better cost than his opponent or at a similar cost, then
have an efficient and reliable way to transport the economic goods from manufacture to
client with a good marketing standpoint so the agent that is engaging in this economic
exchange is convinced that it is the best transaction that they can do. This is just a simple
example and other more complex examples that take into account labor interactions and
manufacturing capabilities can be made, but for simplicity the aforementioned example is
appropriate. The skills necessary to be able to interact in the level of the market involve
the understanding of the market, from the basic functionality of complex market
dynamics, to basic interactions with clients, rational thinking and of course, excellent
work ethics.

Honneth characterizes the acquisition of each of these two languages as a learning
process. [] (I)n both cases (family and civil society) it is the participation in the
respective practices that makes it possible to undergo the necessary learning processes
and to learn the corresponding skills (Honneth, 74). One can interpret from this passage
that Honneth believes that one is not fully able to speak the language of either the family
or civil society from the moment one is born, rather it is a complete process that stems
form the education one receives as a family and is practiced as one grows and gets further
and further involved in civil society, until a point in time is reached that they are able to
Jesus G Lopez Lozano 05/06/14
Jgl679 GOV 335M
Prompt 4 Professor Gregg

5
form a family. It is at this point that they proceed to further develop in civil society and it
is until they understand the whole mechanics of the capitalist market that they have truly
mastered the skills and the language of both spheres. It is a process that takes time and
must be done the right way, because if a person is not truly educated in the language of
either the family or the market, one will attain freedom in either sphere. The learning
process truly liberates an individual as they learn from this that they must remain true to
themselves and not loose their individuality. Whats more, the process is liberating
because it is through it that corrections to conducts that are not in harmony with the
proper interactions in the spheres are made. This is best exemplified with a person that
marries at a tender age with the idea that it is only love that reigns the family and finds
out that it is not only mutual love and affection, but respect, interdependence and other
values that are necessary to make it work. This person made a mistake, but the sphere of
the family corrected this mistake and made him realize that he was not free and true to
himself, and one would hope that after this the next time he decides to form a family it
would be through a correct interdependence. Hegel talks briefly about this in the
following passage [] the uneducated man can easily cause offense for he simply lets
himself go and does not reflect on the feelings of others. He does not wish to hurt others,
but his conduct is not in harmony with his will (Hegel, 187). Here Hegel puts perfectly
in context this learning process, as he states that a person does not wish to hurt others or
to harm the interactions of a particular sphere, but he still does because he is not speaking
the same language as those that are interacting in said sphere. It is through the learning
process that Honneth describes that ones conduct is corrected and reaches the harmony
with ones will that is the true essence of the family and civil society.
Jesus G Lopez Lozano 05/06/14
Jgl679 GOV 335M
Prompt 4 Professor Gregg

6
In his reflections Hegel talks about the true path towards the freedom of the will. He sees
family as the starting point, followed by civil society and ending in the state. It is the
transition from one sphere to another that brings freedom to a person, but he also reflects
that certain attitudes and characteristics of those who participate in these spheres are
needed for them to be able to truly attain this. The family speaks the language of mutual
love and affection, of respect, loyalty and interdependence. All of these without loosing
the sense of oneself and one's individuality. In the family, the practices involved are those
of provision of goods, of education, of comprehension and guidance. It is this need to
provide that one transitions from family to civil society, where the capitalist markets
prevail and economic exchanges are made. In this sphere, practices of mutually beneficial
agreements are found, where rational thinking, strong work ethic and the understanding
of the market are required skills for one to have a fruitful development in it. Furthermore,
one cannot only take from the market but must also produce and provide so others can
also satisfy their needs. Finally, the acquisition and practice of these attitudes and skills
are not something that one is born with and can easily apply at will. Rather these
languages are acquired through a continuous learning process, one that starts from birth
and stems until mastery, where trial and error prevail and the forces of the family or civil
spheres correct the deficiencies one can have. It is through this learning process that one
is really liberated because the true, meaningful and required interaction with each sphere
is made and one is able to maintain its essence and individuality as they interact in one
sphere on another. Hegel thought of this as correcting conducts that are not in harmony
with ones will. Only by completing this learning process one is truly free.