Hegel and later communitarians distinguish between Gesellschaft-style legal-political bonds and the thicker Sittlichkeit of family and civil society as genuine identity-forming communities.

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Communitarians(as a school of political philosophy): Philosophers who believe that communities and shared values are essential to human life, rather than viewing people as independent individuals making choices alone.
Gesellschaft(as a type of social bond): A German word meaning 'society'—but specifically referring to relationships based on contracts and self-interest, like a business deal where people interact for practical benefit.
Hegel(as the main philosopher referenced in this statement): Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was a German philosopher (1770-1831) who argued that reality and human thought develop through a process of contradiction and resolution, constantly evolving toward greater understanding.
Identity-forming communities(as communities that change us): Groups of people whose shared life together actually shapes who you are as a person—like how being part of a family or neighborhood influences your values and identity.
Legal-political bonds(as a form of human connection): Connections between people created by laws and government rules rather than by shared culture or deep relationships.
Sittlichkeit(Hegel's political philosophy; contrasted with the purely subjective moral will): A German term meaning 'the ethical' or 'ethical life'; in Hegel's philosophy, the tradition of communal ethical life that mediates and grounds individual reason and freedom

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