Perhaps one of the most revolutionary works of philosophy ever written, "The Phenomenology of Spirit" is Hegel's 1807 work that is in numerous ways extraordinary. It begins with a Preface, written after the rest of the manuscript was completed, that explains the core of his method and what sets it apart from any preceding philosophy. The Introduction, written before the rest of the work, summarizes and completes Kant's ideas on skepticism by rendering it moot and encouraging idealism and self-realization. The body of the work is divided into six sections of varying length, entitled Consciousness, Self-Consciousness, Reason, Spirit, Religion, and Absolute Knowledge. A myriad of topics are discussed, and explained in such a harmoniously complex way that the method has been termed Hegelian dialectic. Ultimately, the work as a whole is a remarkable study of the mind's growth from its direct awareness to scientific philosophy, proving to be a difficult yet highly influential and enduring work.

黑格尔（1770-1831）是德国唯心主义的集大成者，西方哲学史上最伟大的哲学家之一。求学于图宾根大学（与谢林、荷尔德林为同窗），先后任教于耶拿大学、海德堡大学、柏林大学。主要著作有《费希特和谢林的哲学体系的差别》（1801）、《精神现象学》（1807）、《逻辑学》（1812-1816）、《哲学科学百科全书》（1817）、《法哲学原理》（1821）；除此之外，《历史哲学讲演录》、《美学讲演录》、《宗教哲学讲演录》、《哲学史讲演录》等课堂讲授录也是黑格尔哲学的重要呈现。