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Hegel's Theory of Tragic Heroes HEGEL’S THEORY OF TRAGIC HEROES: THE HISTORICAL PROGRESS OF SUBJECTIVITY A Dissertation Submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY by Rachel C. Falkenstern May 2016 Examining Committee Members: Dr. Kristin Gjesdal, Advisory Chair, Philosophy Dr. Susan Feagin, Philosophy Dr. Espen Hammer, Philosophy Dr. Paul Kottman, External Member, Comparative Literature and Philosophy, The New School for Social Research © Copyright 2016 by Rachel C. Falkenstern All Rights Reserved € ii ABSTRACT This dissertation argues that Hegel’s theory of tragedy is best understood in combination with his theory of the historical progress of subjective freedom, and that this progress is manifested as the heroes of tragic drama in its different stages of antiquity, early modernity, and late modernity. The truth of tragedy for Hegel, like the content of all art, progresses concomitantly with human freedom, reason, and subjectivity. Likewise, humanity’s self-understanding of these aspects of itself also historically progresses. In this light, I further argue that Hegel’s theory shows tragedy to be not only a historically contextualized cultural practice and form of self-understanding but also a presentation of absolute truth: the truth of a culture at a particular historical moment is presented in its tragedy, yet that culture is a part of a larger narrative, so that a common thread running through tragic drama of all eras comes to light when tragedy is examined through the lens of Hegel’s philosophy. Specifically, I show that Hegel views self-contradiction, alienation, and the drive to reconcile these as underlying universal human conditions, and in tragedy this universal truth is embodied in the tragic hero. This appears in tragic heroes as they take responsibility for unintentional actions, or as they remain fixed to their cause although it brings about their own downfall. In consideration of our own historical standpoint and of my agreement with Hegel’s view that tragedy retains an important role in our cultural self-understanding, this dissertation shifts the focus from ancient Greek tragedy, the prevailing theme in Hegel scholarship and in wider discussions of Hegel’s theory of tragedy, and instead directs more attention to modern tragedy. According to Hegel, a key aspect of all tragic heroes is iii that they either freely will their actions or take responsibility for them, or both. Additionally, as subjective freedom historically progresses, so does our awareness of our freedom to choose our actions or to take responsibility for them. I show how this progress is manifested in ancient, early modern, and late modern tragic heroes—in works by Sophocles, Shakespeare, and Schiller, respectively—and, finally, in the tragic heroes of some contemporary works of film. The historical grounding of my reading of Hegel’s theory of tragedy combined with my focus on the tragic hero lends a unique perspective to our understanding of Hegel’s theories of tragedy and of subjectivity, and to our interpretations of the tragic works themselves. This dissertation thus sheds new light on Hegel’s theory of tragedy, an important endeavor in itself, with the larger aim of showing how Hegel’s philosophy of tragedy helps us better understand both tragedy and ourselves, as inheritors of and participants in philosophical discussions of tragedy, and as contemporary audiences that engage with tragic dramas in a variety of venues. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Thank you to everyone who supported, encouraged, questioned, didn’t question, counseled, assisted, entertained, pressured, taught, inspired, humored, and believed in me during this long journey. I am extremely grateful to my amazing committee. Kristin Gjesdal is an inspiration in her philosophical approach, work ethic, attention to detail, and body of knowledge. I am indebted to her intellectual and personal generosity; my project would be nothing without her counsel and critical eye. I was lucky to have been an assistant for four years to Susan Feagin when she was Editor of The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, and then lucky again to have her keen eye and mind on my own work as a member of my committee. The countless things I have learned from her in both of these roles have already proven invaluable to my work on tragedy and in aesthetics, and to my larger professional career. My most sincere thanks to Espen Hammer for his comments, his time, and his encouragement to work more on this project, which I look forward to doing with him. I am grateful to Paul Kottman for lending his time and insight to my dissertation, which has benefitted from his research; I look forward to continuing our conversation. Thank you to the Temple University Philosophy Department and community. Thanks to Miriam Solomon for her dedication to the department and for her sincere efforts in helping the graduate students succeed. Thanks to Paul C. Taylor for his humor, his kindness, his honest counsel, and for his time being on my proposal committee. I am grateful for the presence of Phil Alperson’s musical and warm spirit in the department, v and for his time being on my proposal committee. I am indebted to Sonia Lawson for her attention to detail, her patience, and her kindness; without her professionalism, I probably would not be graduating. Innumerable thanks to Shawn Schurr for her generosity and kindness; her constantly going above and beyond her duties helped make it possible for me to get my PhD. Thanks to Paul Crowe for his help during my time at Temple. I am grateful to Lewis R. Gordon for his generosity, both personally and academically (if one can separate those areas). Thanks to Evelyn Rush for all of her help. I am lucky to count Avram Gurland-Blaker as a friend—and not just because we agree on Hegel—and to now also count Erin McConnell and the rest of their family as part of my own. Thanks to Aili Bresnahan for giving so much energy and time to the profession, and for being so kind and astute, both academically and personally. It was great working with Heather Coletti at the Journal, and many thanks to her for coming to my dissertation defense. Thanks to Joan Grassbaugh-Forry for all she did while she was also at Temple. Finally, thank you to all my other teachers and classmates at Temple University who helped make graduate school a wonderful experience. Hunter College has been my second home, first as an undergraduate and then as a teacher while I completed my graduate work. Thanks to Frank Kirkland for believing in me; I respect and admire his dedication to philosophy and how he unflaggingly proves it. Laura Keating has been an amazingly generous and patient Chair to work with. I am grateful for all she has done for me, and from her I have learned a lot about the profession. Thanks to Omar Dahbour for his coversation, his professional counsel, his encouragement, and for writing a letter when I applied to graduate school; I am lucky to vi still have him as mentor and as friend. Christa Davis Acampora is nothing short of a role model both as teacher and as philosopher; as her former student and as a teacher now, I am grateful for the time she invests in her students. I am also grateful to her for writing a letter for me when I applied to graduate school, and she has been generous to me in many other ways as I begin my career. Thanks to John Lango for being an excellent teacher, for writing a letter for me when I applied to graduate school, and for having a great sense of humor. I am indebted to Gerald Press for his astute counsel, keen insights, and generosity in giving these and giving his time in general; in his dedication to the profession and to his students, he has become a role model to me. Many thanks to Linda Martín Alcoff for being amazing on all levels; she is an inspirational human being. Due to my time at Hunter, I am lucky to count Dara Meyers-Kingsley as colleague and friend, for which I am extremely grateful. Many thanks to all my other mentors, teachers, colleagues, and students at Hunter; I have learned so much from you. Finally, but not least of all, thanks to all my friends and family. So many of you have done so many things that detailing them would be longer than the dissertation itself. This work, and everything surrounding it, has been such a big part of my life that there is no way to separate the academic, emotional, philosophical, financial, intellectual, and personal effects of all the time, words, meetings, and things you have done for me and given me, intentionally or unintentionally. You are all my motivation and inspiration. I will thank you each, and celebrate with you, properly in person. Thanks to Mom, for seeing the mystical side, to Dad for seeing the funny side, to Max for seeing the musical side, to Dennis for seeing the far side, and to Jeremy for seeing the bright side, and for vii doing and being everything. I am grateful to Susan Wicklow for being my best friend; can’t wait to go on holiday with you, Eds. Thanks to Vincent Li for being one of the best friends any one could ever have, and for adding Sarah Li to my list of awesome friends (and Oliver!). Thanks to Fred Backus for being an amazing friend, still, after all this time, and to Pamela Sabaugh for being an amazing friend for almost as long (and to both of you for adding Evelyn to the family).
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