On the Relation of Language and Logic in Hegel’s Philosophy

In this paper, we will focus on the relation of language and logic in Hegel’s philosophy. First, we will distinguish between two important aspects of language, that is, the semiological aspect and the semantical. As we will see, language in the first aspect is solely considered as a system based on grammatical rules or as a structure of signs. But when, in a concrete way, the semantical aspect of language is also taken into account, we will encounter language as the general realm of representations. It is in this context that Hegel considers language, as the realm of representations, to be the basis for a kind of knowledge by acquaintance, which is the condition and the presupposition of philosophical knowledge. Thirdly, we will show that language as the basis of knowledge through familiarity is the very beginning of the Phenomenology of Spirit. It is for this reason that Hegel considers Phenomenology to be a ladder of ascension of common consciousness to the level of philosophical consciousness. In other words, the dialectical progression of the forms of consciousness begins from the level of common consciousness and common language and ultimately reaches the level of logic as the truth of language. In the end, it becomes clear that the realm of Hegel’s logic is precisely the inversion of common consciousness, and in this sense we can say that language is the potential logic and logic is the actual language.