In addition to the previous In Memoriam, as hegelpd research group of the University of Padua, we join the entire philosophical community in memory of Prof. Robert Stern by sharing the words of Prof. Stephen Houlgate, President of the Hegel Society of Great Britain.

***

Robert Stern (1962-2024)

By Prof. Stephen Houlgate

It is with great sadness that we report the death of our dear friend and colleague Bob Stern on 21 August 2024.

Bob was well known and respected around the world for his groundbreaking work on Hegel, Kant, Løgstrup, Peirce and others. He also earned the deep affection of colleagues and students for his great enthusiasm and good humour in philosophical debate and his unfailing kindness and generosity towards others.

Bob’s contribution to Hegel studies was considerable and wide-ranging, covering Hegel’s phenomenology and metaphysics, as well as his moral and political philosophy. Bob published numerous important essays (partly or wholly) on Hegel, as well as the following highly influential books: Hegel, Kant and the Structure of the Object (1990), The Routledge Philosophy Guidebook to Hegel and the Phenomenology of Spirit (2002), Hegelian Metaphysics (2009), and Understanding Moral Obligation: Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard (2012). In recent years he turned his attention to Hegel’s relation to Luther, and in 2023 he published the excellent essay “‘This is the Very Essence of the Reformation: Man in His Very Nature is Destined to be Free’. Hegel, Luther and Freedom” (Hegel’s Philosophy of Right. Critical Perspectives on Freedom and History, ed. D. Moyar, K. Padgett Walsh and S. Rand [Routledge], 45-65).

Members of the Hegel Society of Great Britain (HSGB) owe Bob a special debt, as he was a leading figure in the Society for many years. He edited the Bulletin of the Hegel Society of Great Britain (now Hegel Bulletin) from 1991 to 1997, and he was President of the HSGB from 2004 to 2011. He co-organized numerous conferences for the HSGB and helped promote the work of a great many young scholars and students. Indeed, he provided practical support and inspiration for more people than he could ever imagine.

Bob was an outstanding and influential philosopher, and he was tireless in his work on behalf of the profession. Beyond his service to the HSGB he served as head of department at the University of Sheffield, editor of the European Journal of Philosophy, President of the British Philosophical Association, President of the Aristotelian Society and Chair of the Philosophy section in the last REF (2021). Most importantly, Bob was a wonderful human being, a loyal friend and teacher, and a loving husband to Crosby and father to Adam and Lucy. He will be greatly missed.

On 21 August 2024, Prof. Robert Stern passed away at the age of 62.

Robert Stern graduated at St John’s College, Cambridge, where he became a Research Fellow. From 2000, Prof. Stern was Professor at the University of Sheffield, and from 2004 to 2008, he was the Head of the Department of Philosophy. He also served on the editorial board of the European Journal of Philosophy and was President of the British Philosophical Association. In 2019, he was elected a fellow of the British Academy.

Professor Stern was renowned for his work in the history of philosophy, particularly in nineteenth century post-Kantian German philosophy, with a focus on Kant and Hegel. His research interests also included epistemology, metaphysics, ethics and political philosophy.
Among his many works, he was the author of The Radical Demand in Løgstrup’s Ethics (2019), Kantian Ethics: Value, Agency, and Obligation (2015), Understanding Moral Obligation: Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard (2011), Hegelian Metaphysics (2009), Transcendental Arguments and Scepticism: Answering the Question of Justification (2000), and Hegel, Kant and the Structure of the Object (1990).

As hegelpd research group of the University of Padua, we join the entire philosophical community in memory of Prof. Robert Stern by sharing his interview What Is It Like to Be a Philosopher? (“Interviews: What Is It Like to Be a Philosopher?”, by Cliff Sosis).