Disappearing Idealism: McDowell on Hegel and Wittgenstein

• Applicant: Professor Garris Rogonyan, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: History of Philosophy ; Theoretical Philosophy
• Term: since 2026
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 578721480

My primary research objectives involve examining the feasibility of John McDowell's proposed "domestication" of the philosophical tradition, with particular emphasis on the implications of Hegel's absolute idealism. Notably, McDowell situates Hegel's philosophy within Wittgenstein's quietism and therapeutic approach to philosophical problems. While McDowell briefly touches on the similarities between Hegel and Wittgenstein, he does not develop this theme systematically. As a result, I aim to expand on this topic. To accomplish this, I will incorporate Stanley Cavell's concept of the Ordinary, which I believe will help to uncover the potential of comparing Hegel and Wittgenstein. Through this comparison, my research will explore three main areas: (a) the therapeutic method, (b) the limitations of our understanding of the world and its cognition, and (c) our own self-knowledge. (a) Just as Cavell wanted to return our ordinary words "home" (because they were "lost" in philosophy), McDowell wants to return our concepts "home" from which they were expelled due to our impulse to philosophize. Clarifying how, according to McDowell, this can be carried out in principle is the first and primary goal of my research. (b) The second line of my research focuses on the parallels between Hegel and Wittgenstein as drawn by Robert Pippin and Terry Pinkard. While Bernard Williams and Jonathan Lear attributed to Wittgenstein a kind of transcendental idealism, Pippin and Pinkard try to attribute to Wittgenstein a kind of Hegelian absolute idealism. However, McDowell points out that their constructivist approach in this case leads rather to subjective idealism. Therefore, the next goal of my research is to show that Pippin and Pinkard misunderstand the philosophy of the later Wittgenstein when they interpret it through the lens of Hegel's philosophy. To do this, I plan to contrast their interpretation with McDowell’s understanding of how the ideas of Hegel and Wittgenstein can be brought together. The theoretical framework for my research here will be McDowell’s reflections on the continuation and interruption of tradition, based on the ideas of two very different Hegelians: Karl Marx and Hans-Georg Gadamer. (c) Finally, my research also aims to explore potential parallels between Hegel's concept of self-consciousness and McDowell's insights into our understanding of ourselves. Drawing on the works of Wittgenstein, G. E. M. Anscombe, and Gareth Evans, I seek to understand how McDowell's explanation of the purpose and structure of The Phenomenology of Spirit can help us compare and contrast the Hegelian and Wittgensteinian approaches to the problem of self-knowledge. As a result of this project, I intend to prepare for publication a book in English on the philosophy of John McDowell. The provisional title of the book is Disappearing Idealism: McDowell on Hegel and Wittgenstein.

• DFG Programme: WBP Position