This book serves as an introduction to Hegel's ideas on the nature of law. It examines whether state-centric domestic and international laws are binding upon autonomous individuals. The author also explores why Hegel assumes that this arrangement is more civilized than living in a stateless culture. The book takes the reader through different structures of legal consciousness, from the private law of property, contract, and crimes to intentionality, the family, the role of the state, and international law. The author introduces Hegel's vocabulary, and contrasts Hegel's issues and arguments wit ... More

This book serves as an introduction to Hegel's ideas on the nature of law. It examines whether state-centric domestic and international laws are binding upon autonomous individuals. The author also explores why Hegel assumes that this arrangement is more civilized than living in a stateless culture. The book takes the reader through different structures of legal consciousness, from the private law of property, contract, and crimes to intentionality, the family, the role of the state, and international law. The author introduces Hegel's vocabulary, and contrasts Hegel's issues and arguments with contemporary legal philosophers. The book's interdisciplinary focus opens up Hegel's legal philosophy, providing a background to forms of legal consciousness for a wide audience. Addressing whether Hegel succeeds in his endeavor to explain why laws are binding, the author comments directly on contemporary constitutional and international law, and reveals how Hegel's ideas on law stand up in the world today.