Introduction

Perhaps one of the areas of Hegel's political philosophy that has received the least attention is his theory of the family. This lack of attention is certainly not the result of agreement with his readers. In fact, Hegel's views have attracted much criticism. This criticism concerns Hegel's defence of the traditional family: a husband and wife raising children in a monogamous relationship where only the husband engages in activities outside the home, such as employment or full political participation. Such views have brought the ire of feminists, in particular, leading one feminist critic to argue that we should all ‘spit on Hegel’(!). Others are equally dismissive, but on different grounds. For example, Peter Steinberger argues that the ‘Hegelian account [of] marriage seems to speak to a simpler time, a time long past’. Thus, it is not so much that Hegel is wrong by our standards, but that he is simply defending the prejudiced view of the family of his day.

In this chapter, I will adopt the following approach to interpreting Hegel's views:

I share the view with most, if not all, contemporary philosophers that the ideal family is not a heterosexual, monogamous married couple with children where the wife's roles are limited to homemaker and mother; I do not believe there is such a thing as ‘an ideal family’.