Pizhuhish nāmah-i intiqādī-i mutūn va barnāmah hā-yi ̒ulūm-i insāni (Critical Studies in Texts & Programs of Human Sciences)

"Desire," "Other," and "Work" The Emergence of a Different Meaning of Objectivity in "Phenomenology of Spirit

Document Type : Research

Authors

Mohammad Hadi Mohammadi 1
Ali Asghar Mosleh 2

1 PhD Candidate in Philosophy, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

2 Professor, Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

https://doi.org/10.30465/crtls.2026.51755.2926
Abstract
The issue of recognizing external objects in modern philosophy, especially with the denial of the distinction between primary and secondary qualities, has become a fundamental problem. In this context, Kant, in his transcendental idealism, sought to explain external objects based on the necessary unity of consciousness; for him, the object is the product of the self-consciousness's determination of sensory data. Concepts and categories of understanding serve as expressions of this unity of self-consciousness, acting as a formal judgment that is applied to the diverse material of the senses and provides representational objects in experience. However, Hegel, in his "Phenomenology of Spirit" offered a different explanation of how objectivity is constituted, not based on reliance on sensory data. He initially critiqued Kant's transcendental self-consciousness, explaining that the relationship between self-consciousness and the world is not immediate but is mediated through "Desire" and ultimately through the "Other." This article aims to examine how "Desire" signifies self-consciousness and then, through it, the essential role of the "Other" in the formation of self-consciousness. Finally, by providing an analysis of the dialectic of master and slave, it will demonstrate how the concept of "Work" in the slave plays a key role in the constitution of objectivity in Hegelian idealism through the subject's objectification of its content and its recognition by the "Other."
Introduction
The problem of objectivity and the possibility of cognition of external objects constitutes one of the most fundamental challenges of modern philosophy. This problem became particularly acute after the collapse of the distinction between primary and secondary qualities and the consequent weakening of the possibility of a direct correspondence between consciousness and the external world. Within this context, Kant’s transcendental idealism sought to preserve the necessity and universality of objective knowledge by grounding objectivity in the a priori unity of self-consciousness. By denying any immediate access to the thing in itself, Kant understood objectivity as the result of the transcendental self-consciousness’s determination of the manifold of sensible intuition, and he conceived the categories of the understanding as the a priori conditions of the possibility of experience. Nevertheless, Kant’s account of objectivity, insofar as it relies on a merely formal and contentless unity, became the target of sustained criticism, most notably by Hegel. The present article undertakes a critical reconstruction of Hegel’s alternative account of objectivity as developed in the “Phenomenology of Spirit”, and argues that Hegel fundamentally transforms the concept of objectivity from a purely epistemological and formal notion into one that is historical, intersubjective, and practical. The central question guiding the analysis is how objectivity becomes possible in Hegel’s system and what role the concepts of “Desire,” “The Other,” and, above all, “Work” play in its constitution.

Materials & Methods
Methodologically, the article adopts an analytical and interpretive approach, grounded in a close conceptual reading of the sections on consciousness and self-consciousness in the “Phenomenology of Spirit”. It begins by reconstructing the Kantian framework of objectivity, with particular emphasis on the transcendental deduction and the function of the unity of apperception, in order to clarify the background against which Hegel’s critique is formulated.

Discussion & Result
Hegel, while accepting that unity is a necessary condition of experience, rejects the Kantian view that such unity is an a priori, purely formal, and presupposed structure. Instead, he conceives unity as the result of a dialectical process that is mediated and achieved. A central thesis of the article is that, for Hegel, the relation between self-consciousness and the world is never immediate. Rather, it is mediated through desire and, ultimately, through the relation to another self-consciousness. Self-consciousness initially appears as desire, striving to attain certainty of itself by negating otherness and reducing the world to an object of its own satisfaction. This attempt, however, necessarily fails, since the negation of “The Other” simultaneously reveals self-consciousness’s dependence on that very “Other”. Consequently, self-consciousness can achieve fulfillment only in relation to another self-consciousness and through a process of recognition. This dynamic is articulated most clearly in the dialectic of master and slave. The article demonstrates that although the master initially appears as an independent self-consciousness and the slave as a dependent one, this asymmetry is fundamentally reversed through the experiences of fear and work. Fear of death turns the slave’s consciousness inward and deepens its self-relation, while work—understood as disciplined, purposive, and delayed activity—enables the objectification of the slave’s inner capacities and intentions. The article’s key finding is that it is in the slave’s work that a distinctively Hegelian meaning of objectivity first emerges. Work is not merely the transformation of natural objects; rather, it is a process through which self-consciousness externalizes and embodies its inner content—its aims, values, and ideas—in the external world. The product of work is thus an object that is both objectively real and a manifestation of the subject’s self-consciousness. In this way, objectivity is no longer conceived merely as the subsumption of sensible data under a priori concepts, but as the objective embodiment of self-consciousness in a shared world that is available for recognition by others. The article further argues that this point marks the fundamental difference between Kantian and Hegelian objectivity. Whereas Kantian objectivity rests on a formal unity of self-consciousness and remains largely confined to the domain of nature, Hegelian objectivity arises from practical, historical, and intersubjective processes and extends into the realm of spirit, culture, and human life. From this perspective, work is not simply an economic or physical activity, but a central epistemological and ontological category through which objectivity is constituted within idealism.

Conclusion
In conclusion, the article maintains that by rejecting the Kantian notion of the thing in itself and any external anchor for reality, Hegel is compelled to ground objectivity entirely within self-consciousness. However, this grounding cannot be achieved by an isolated or purely theoretical self-consciousness. Objectivity becomes possible only through practical objectification and through recognition by the “Other”. The slave’s work thus provides a paradigmatic model for understanding how objectivity is realized in human life: as the outcome of action, historical development, and mutual recognition. This reconceptualization of objectivity opens the way for a conception of objective human sciences beyond the Kantian framework and underscores Hegel’s pivotal role in redefining the relation between subject and object

Keywords

Desire
Hegel
Objectivity
Phenomenology of Spirit
Self-consciousness
The Other
Work
Subjects
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  • Receive Date 28 April 2025
  • Revise Date 04 January 2026
  • Accept Date 06 January 2026

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