The liberal Hegelianism of Edward Caird: Or, how to transcend the social economics of Kant and the romantics
International Journal of Social Economics
ISSN: 0306-8293
Article publication date: 28 September 2010
Abstract
Purpose
The paper establishes that Edward Caird developed a distinctive form of liberal Hegelianism out of his critical responses to Kant, the romantic tradition of Rousseau, Goethe and Wordsworth and indeed Hegel himself.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents a philosophical reconstruction of Caird's social economics that is based on a close reading of a very wide range of Caird's writings including his recently published lectures on social ethics and political economy.
Findings
Caird's theory of historical development underpinned his writings on social economics. One of his greatest debts in this regard was to his interpretation of the romantics, which introduced a rich conception of higher human capacities into his critical analysis of capitalism. When combined with his critique of Kantian formalism, this led Caird towards Hegel. Yet, Caird's concerns regarding corporatism's stultifying tendencies led him to develop a dynamic form of liberal Hegelianism, which placed far greater trust than had Hegel in the ability of free conscientious citizens to restructure and enrich established social categories (classes, professions, gender roles and so on) and the system of nations which those categories helped to constitute.
Practical implications
If Caird's liberal Hegelianism were to be adopted today, we could live in much freer, fairer and enriching communities than we do at present.
Originality/value
Edward Caird has been wrongly neglected in intellectual histories of Anglo‐American political theory, and while his writings on Kant's critical philosophy have received some scholarly attention, his critique of romanticism has never received the attention it deserves. This also draws on manuscripts that have been published only within the past five years, having been edited for the first time by the author of this paper.
Keywords
Citation
Tyler, C. (2010), "The liberal Hegelianism of Edward Caird: Or, how to transcend the social economics of Kant and the romantics", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 37 No. 11, pp. 852-866. https://doi.org/10.1108/03068291011082829
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2010, Emerald Group Publishing Limited