Hegel, World History and International Relations As Part of the Struggle for Freedom/Hegel, Dunya Tarihi Ve Ozgurluk Mucadelesi Olarak Uluslararasi Iliskiler (Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel) (Critical Essay‪)‬

Summary This article aims to assess the importance of Hegel's thought for the theory of international relations. It is claimed that Hegel's theory of international relations should be seen in the context of his philosophy of history, which according to Hegel is a struggle for freedom and recognition. Hegel's philosophy is based on the belief that there is an underlying Spirit or what he calls Geist behind observable reality which can be known and understood. When Hegel says the real is rational and the rational is real he means that we have to look for the reason behind and the Spirit inherent in human artefacts. History is the process of closing this gap between the Spirit and its realisation in this world; it is the progressive self-consciousness of understanding that everything is part of the Spirit. Ultimately, this self-consciousness implies the reconciliation of the universal (Spirit) with the particular and the realisation of human freedom. Man is free only when he understands that spirit constitutes his universal essence and when he overcomes his alienation from the outside world.