Determination
Hegel (pervasive, basic concept)
Determination is ambiguous: (1) the what (the quality) --- that which something is. (Ch. 2) The act of determining --- the activity of positing. Everything that exists is determinate (*omnis determinatio est negatio* --- Spinoza). Determination happens through negation: A is determined by not-B. Determinacy is posited determination. In Logic: every category is a determination of the absolute. The undetermined (pure being) is empty --- only the determinate is concrete.
Origin
Lat. *determinatio*. Spinoza: "*Omnis determinatio est negatio*" (Every determination is negation). Kant: determination through categories. Hegel: determination as self-determination of the concept.
In Hegel
Enc. §86 (note); SL Vol. 1, Quality
Cross-references
Determinacy · Negation · Quality · Concept · Positing