What do we mean when we say something “exists”? Kant famously argued that we cannot mean a property of things, for then – implausibly on his view – it would be possible to demonstrate God’s existence by purely a priori means. But if existence is not a property, what then is it? The AHRC and DFG funded research project Existence After Kant (Mark Textor, King’s & Dolf Rami, U. Bochum) investigates answers to this question.

Part of this project is to engage with philosophers who want to resist aspects of Kant’s theory of being and existence. G.W.F. Hegel famously argued that being is – pace Kant – in a certain respect accessible in pure thought. At the same time, however, Hegel agrees with Kant that we cannot think things into existence. In this second project related workshop, leading Hegel scholar Stephen Houlgate (University of Warwick) will help us to better understand Hegel’s take on being and his complex relation to Kant.

This event is organised in collaboration with the History of Philosophy Research Cluster at King’s College London (KHOPS). The workshop will be held in person and it is open to all. To attend, please register no later than 20 May 2025.

Programme:

• Introduction
• Stephen Houlgate (Warwick): Hegel on Being