Hegel and Empire

M.A.R. Habib

Hegel and Empire

From Postcolonialism to Globalism
M.A.R. Habib
Rutgers University, U.S.A.
Visiting Professor, Gulf University for Science and Technology, Kuwait

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This book is gratefully dedicated
to
my friend and colleague
Keith Hall
 Preface

Hegel’s views on cultures beyond Europe raise some very disturbing ques-
tions. Are his ethnocentric pronouncements concerning the superiority
of Europe grounded in the basic principles of his thought? Or do they
internally shape those principles? In either case, is Hegel representative of
broader traditions of European thought? Did the formulation of a
European identity presuppose a certain model of history? A certain kind
of history of philosophy? These questions continue to generate strife to
this day.
It’s well-known that Hegel occupies a fraught position within postco-
lonial studies. The conventional postcolonial portrait of Hegel is that of
an arrogant, even racist, thinker who was profoundly Eurocentric in his
vision of philosophy, history, and the very nature of humanity. Yet even
this anti-Hegelian discourse, which seeks to “escape” or supersede Hegel,
is itself enabled by Hegelian categories of self and Other, identity and
difference, as well as the Hegelian concept of recognition.
More recent studies of Hegel, especially by philosophers, have
attempted to come to Hegel’s defense. In general, it is clear that scholars
on both sides of this Hegel “war” have produced sophisticated and com-
pelling arguments. However, many of these debates have taken place at a
rather specialized level, which can easily lose the reader who is not deeply
familiar with Hegel’s work. For example, Hegel’s master-slave dialectic is
one of the most complex portions of his account of consciousness; and
vii
viii  Preface

parts of it are often cited in support of various theoretical positions as to

how to frame the relations between colonizer and colonized. But without
a clear account of how Hegel himself frames this dialectic, its import will
be lost on many readers.
In addressing the vexed questions cited above, the proposed book aims
to present a nuanced appraisal of Hegel’s work which takes account of
various readings. It seeks to provide a clear account of Hegel’s treatment
of Africa, India, and Islam, and of the implications of this treatment for
postcolonial and global studies. While it does not pretend to make an
original contribution to Hegelian scholarship, it does differ from previ-
ous works in a number of ways: (1) it offers a fairly comprehensive
account of Hegel’s commentaries on non-Western cultures, providing
clear expositions of Hegel’s master-slave dialectic and his views on Africa,
India, and Islam; (2) it situates these views not only within Hegel’s his-
torical scheme but also within a broader European philosophical context
and the debates they have provoked within Hegel scholarship; (3) in each
chapter it analyzes in depth certain readings of Hegel by postcolonial crit-
ics, in order to explore both the Eurocentric and potentially global nature
of his dialectic; and (4) it engages in close readings of Hegel and his post-
colonial critics in arriving at a balanced assessment of this profoundly
influential thinker, showing both where he archetypally embodies certain
Eurocentric traits that have characterized modernity and how, ironically,
he himself gives us the tools for working toward a more global vision.

Outline of Chapters
The introduction (Chap. 1) gives an overview of Hegel’s dialectic as it
operates in his overall scheme of global history. It argues that this dialec-
tic expresses the movement of capitalist society, whose economics are
intrinsically expansive, ever needing to move outward. Chapter 2
expounds Hegel’s “master-slave dialectic,” explaining why this provides a
necessary framework for approaching Hegel’s views on empire. The next
chapter is devoted to readings of the master-slave dialectic in literary/
postcolonial theory. Chapter 4 examines Hegel’s fiercely-debated views
on Africa, while Chap. 5 analyzes the response to these by postcolonial
  Preface 
   ix

theorists, focusing on Frantz Fanon. With the aid of historians such as

Walter Johnson and Sven Beckert, Chap. 6 argues that slavery was inex-
tricably linked to the development of capitalism and the global economy.
Chapter 7 discusses Hegel’s account, in his aesthetics, of India and of the
Sanskrit epic, the Mahābhārata. Chapter 8 looks at an “Indian” reading
of Hegel by the noted postcolonial critic Gayatri Spivak. Chapter 9 offers
a comprehensive treatment of Hegel’s views of Islam, as expressed in his
assessments of Islamic philosophy, history, and literature. Chapter 10
considers the limitations and potential of Hegel’s characterizations of
Islam. The conclusion to the book addresses the question of what we can
profitably learn from Hegel in a global era, and the potential of his dia-
lectic and historical scheme to help us understand and articulate some of
the salient dilemmas of our own day.
In writing the current book, I have consulted with some of the fore-
most scholars of Hegel and Marx, including Frederick Beiser, Jere Surber,
Terrell Carver, Allen Wood, John O’Neill, and Michael Baur. I have also
sought help from the German historian Andrew Lees and the German
language specialist Lori Lantz, as well as the sociologists Keith Hall and
Thomas Kemple, the African historian Teshale Tibebu, and the Indian
scholar Aakash Singh Rathore. I received much insightful assistance from
a number of eminent literary theorists, including Terry Eagleton, Fredric
Jameson, and from Stuart Barnett. Zhao Ng and Alicia Broggi of Oxford
University also gave me valuable feedback.
 Contents

1 Introduction: Hegel and History   1

2 The Master-Slave Dialectic  19

3 The Master-Slave Dialectic in Literary Theory: Historical

Readings  31

4 Hegel and Africa  49

5 Frantz Fanon: An African Reading of Hegel  65

6 Slavery, Capitalism, and the Dialectic of Empire  75

7 Hegel and India: The Aesthetics of Eurocentrism  85

8 Gayatri Spivak: An “Indian” Reading of Hegel  97

9 Hegel and Islam: Orientalism 115

xi
xii  Contents

10 Reading Hegel’s Islam 131

11 Epilogue: The Dialectic of Empire 139

Index 159