Simon Duffy. The Logic of Expression: Quality, Quantity and Intensity in Spinoza, Hegel and Deleuze, Chapter 1, §4

by Corry Shores
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[The following summarizes Simon Duffy's extraordinary book, The Logic of Expression: Quality, Quantity and Intensity in Spinoza, Hegel and Deleuze, Chapter 1, §4.

Duffy's work is remarkable, so I highly recommend this book. If it costs too much, perhaps encourage your library to obtain a copy.]

Simon Duffy. The Logic of Expression: Quality, Quantity and Intensity in Spinoza, Hegel and Deleuze,

Chapter 1 "Spinoza from the point of view of an idealist or a materialist dialectic",

§4 "Spinoza's metaphysical philosophy":

Hegel opposes his dialectical philosophy to Spinoza's "metaphysical" philosophy, which "seeks to assert and produce only what comes under the category of being, or substance" (11b). Hegel's critical method involves firstly presupposing substance, which leads then to its opposite, the Concept (11c). [See Hegel's Science of Logic §§1287-1288 for his critique in more detail.]

But, Duffy explains, in order for Spinoza's Substance to lead to its opposite, Hegel must have conceived of substance differently (11d). Duffy argues that Hegel's misreading of Spinoza's Letter on the Infinite enables him to subsume Spinoza's substance under his dialectic (12a). Before examining the letter, Duffy will situate it in the context of Spinoza's Ethics.

The third definition of Spinoza's Ethics, Part 1, reads

By substance, I mean that which is in itself, and is conceived through itself : in other words, that of which a conception can be formed independently of any other conception.

Substance

1) is self caused (E.I.P6),

2) is single, solitary, and unique (E.I.P14)

3) varies in an infinite number of ways (that is, it expresses itself qualitatively through an infinity of attributes) (E.I.P11),E.I.D6)

4) is interchangeable with the notion of God or Nature (E.I.P11),

5) has infinite power of existing, "that is, of producing all things that exist - including itself, causa sui" (E.I.P16)

6) has infinite power of thinking "hence of self comprehension, which entails the power of comprehending all that is produced" (E.I.P16)

Substance expresses itself in an infinity of attributes which express themselves in an infinity of modes (12c). The attributes are irreducible to each other, but all express the same single substance. Substance's essence cannot exist outside its attributes, which is why they each express a certain eternal and infinite essence of Substance (E.I.D6).

Substance produces things that correspond to the qualities or attributes of its essence. These things are its affections or modifications, hence Substance expresses itself determinately by affecting itself (12-13). Modes implicate the attributes expressing Substance's essence, but at the same time, the modes' essences are contained in their respective attribute (13a) [see the entry on the dual explication and implication of expression.]

Duffy, Simon. The Logic of Expression: Quality, Quantity and Intensity in Spinoza, Hegel and Deleuze. Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing, 2006.

Spinoza. Ethics. Transl. Elwes. available online at:

http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/s/spinoza/benedict/ethics/index.html