Abstract: To comprehend Hegel's argument that "Art is a thing of the past", one needs to learn Hegel's basic judgment of modern society which is derived from his concept of "second nature". Young Lukács, however, in light of Hegel, gives his own negative version of "second nature" and his judgment of the relation between the modern world and modern art in respect of lyric poetry and novel. Therefore, it is the interaction between the concept of second nature and the concept of modern art that helps us to make sense of why Lukács took a course against Hegel, though he had absorbed dialectics and philosophy art from Hegel.

Key words: Lukács, second nature, modern art, novel, The Theory of the Novel