One of the founders of modern philosophical thought Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) has gained the reputation of being one of the most abstruse and impenetrable of thinkers. This major biography of Hegel offers not only a complete account of the life, but also a perspicuous overview of the key philosophical concepts in Hegel's work in a style that will be accessible to professionals and non-professionals alike. Terry Pinkard situates Hegel firmly in the historical context of his times. The story of that life is of an ambitious, powerful thinker living in a period of great tumult dominated by the figure of Napoleon. The Hegel who emerges from this account is a complex, fascinating figure of European modernity, who offers us a still compelling examination of that new world born out of the political, industrial, social, and scientific revolutions of his period.

特里·平卡德（Terry Pinkard），国际著名黑格尔研究专家，美国乔治敦大学哲学教授，美国西北大学哲学系主任，德国图宾根大学“荣誉教授”和“荣誉教师”，德国《哲学研究杂志》编委会顾问。学术兴趣在于从康德到黑格尔的发展。