Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant:
Last Influential Philosopher of the Theory of Knowledge of the Enlightenment Era
Marwa Eltagouri
A.P Literature and Composition
Mrs. L.A.C Grupp
October 26, 2009
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Introduction
German Philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) is most recognized for his analysis of
speculative and moral reason and his theories on the nature of human judgment. Having
influenced several intellectual movements during the course of the nineteenth and twentieth
centuries, Kant contributed to a new philosophical perspective on epistemology, or the
understanding of the nature of knowledge, by criticizing both its traditional ideas and the
concept of metaphysics. He proposed solutions to reality’s most prevalent mysteries: the roles
of morality and duty upon a person, the difference between what is known and unknown, and
the difference between knowledge and faith, and the limits of each. Through his philosophies
he helped to establish the boundaries between religion and science, and ultimately ceased the
one-sided intellectualism that had previously existed.
Kant was born in Konigsberg, East Prussia and in 1740 attended the University of
Konigsberg with the initial intent of studying theology, yet gradually became interested in
mathematics, philosophy, and the natural sciences. Kant spent seven years at the university yet
was unable to graduate due to financial struggles; his mother and father had both died within
five years of each other and it was necessary that Kant find means of supporting himself. He
therefore became the tutor of the children of higher-class families, and during this time
published many papers dealing with scientific questioning, the most renown of them being
“General Natural History and the Theory of the Heavens” in 1755, in which Kant proposed the
theory that the solar system was derived from the gravitational interaction of atoms . After
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writing a dissertation Kant was given the post of assistant professor at the university, in which
he would lecture on metaphysics, mathematics, logic, and physics (Simons).
Kant published in 1781 his most accredited piece, Critique of Pure Reason, which
explored the limitations and structure of theoretical reason. In it Kant emphasized the faults of
metaphysics and traditional epistemology, and instead suggested, in a scientific manner, how
reason and understanding could be embraced without experience. This idea started what was
known as the “Copernican Revolution” in which the gap between Descartes’ rationalism and
Locke’s empiricism was finally closed, for Kant’s theory had brought them together (Thomson
Gale). In 1788 he presented a different perspective of his theory by presenting a view on
practical reason, which, opposed to theoretical reason’s focus on cognition, deals with selfdetermination, in Critique of Practical Reason. The theory proposed in this critique, which
states that people should act as if their actions would be made into universal law, is known as
“Categorical Imperative”. In 1790 Kant’s third and final Critique was completed, titled Critique
of Judgment, in which Kant explained how the two conflicting ideas of theoretical and practical
reason could be intertwined (Simons).
Kant’s first critique is the most influential of his works; the two critiques that follow
serve as follow-ups completed shortly before his death. Kant eventually grew to be completely
blind and died of natural causes in February of 1804 (Thomson Gale).
Kant’s Copernican Revolution: Theory of Pure Reason
Prior to Kant’s revolution there had existed to major philosophical movements:
Rationalism and Empiricism. Rationalists were firm believers in a priori reasoning, believing that
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understanding could take place without experience, while Empiricists believed in a posteriori
reasoning, which, in contrast, believed that understanding was in fact very much dependent on
experience. Kant believed that both these theories were seriously flawed, and that the twofold difference in knowledge truly hindered the understanding of epistemology (Ross).
Empiricists are firm believers in the idea that our sensations initiate human knowledge.
John Locke, the most recognized of the Empiricists, proposed the idea of tabula rasa, claiming
that the mind is in actuality a blank slate, that gradually becomes filled with ideas of life’s
experiences. Locke and other Empiricists firmly believed that experience taught man everything
from identity to causation to the concept of relationships. Kant, however, thought differently;
he claimed that the blank slate was incapable of explaining preconceived notions and prior
beliefs, and that some components were brought out by the mind (McCormick). Another main
aspect of Empiricism concerned mind-independent objects. George Berkeley argued that since
the human mind depended on senses for input, it would have no other means of verifying the
accuracy of a match between properties that objects possess and human sensations. Berkeley
thus dismissed the idea of mind-independent objects entirely, believing that the mind was
simply unable to possess an idea of such a thing. Kant referred to this rejection as material
idealism, in which people believe that the knowledge of material objects is not achievable
(Ross). Kant therefore refuted Berkeley’s arguments that judgments about objects are in reality
judgments about people’s mental representations by stating that people are capable of making
judgments about their own experiences. To empiricism as a whole, though somewhat
agreeable to certain aspects, Kant concluded that the philosophy could not fully account for
human experiences.
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Rationalists confronted the theory of knowledge by claiming that the world could be
understood by the derivations and analysis of ideas through logic, and that experience was not
necessary. Rene Descartes, for example, believed that based off the knowledge of his own
existence, claiming that “If I am thinking, I exist”, he could provide a basis for all knowledge.
Descartes believed he could understand the existence of all objects surrounding him if he could
understand his own existence as well as the existence of God (McCormick). Kant argued this
belief, however, by stating that knowledge of surrounding objects cannot simply be inferred,
weakening Descartes’ famed cogito proposition. The claims of rationalists also possess
antinomies, which are contradictory pairs of claims that are both valid, such as “The world has a
beginning in time and is limited as regards space” and “The world has no beginning and no limit
in space” (McCormick). These two antinomies, since they could both be proven valid through
reason, show how there exist metaphysical mistakes in rationalist philosophy, Kant stated. If
these antinomies could be resolved, Kant argued, then rationalism would have more truth to it.
Kant concluded that the philosophy could not entirely explain human knowledge, however, due
to its inability to recognize that the knowledge of some objects simply could not be understood
without experience (Ross).
Kant found a solution to the problems these two philosophies created which would later
on prove to be completely innovative. Kant stated that it had to be first understood that the
terms a priori and a posteriori were incapable of characterizing such metaphysical proposals. A
proper study of knowledge required the distinction between analytic and synthetic truths. The
predicate is contained within the subject in an analytic statement, such as “Every person
occupies a room”, in which the act of occupying a room is disclosed in the analysis of a person.
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A predicate is not located, however, in the subject of a synthetic claim. In the statement “A
person is 6 feet tall”, two individual concepts are synthesized, or joined together. Empiricism,
according to Kant, failed because it was unable to prove synthetic a priori statements such as
“Each event has a cause,” due to the fact that they had merged “a posteriori” with “synthetic”
and “a priori” with “analytic”, assuming that the ultimate categories were final (McCormick).
Kant argued that a synthetic a priori statement must be true without calling upon experience,
although the predicate is not logically enclosed within the subject. Synthetic a priori
statements, according to Kant, require a completely different proof than the other claims do.
Kant stated that indications on how to proceed could be found among the examples of
synthetic a priori claims in mathematics and science, such as Newton’s claim “the amount of
matter is always conserved”. Synthetic a priori statements build up and add to what already
contained critically in a concept without demanding the need for experience (McCormick).
Though complex and rather intricate, Kant’s conclusion was that several synthetic a
priori statements are true simply due to the mind structure that is familiar with them. The
statement “Each event has a cause” was unable to be proven by experience, yet an experience
could not take place without it due to the fact that it in itself depicted the mind’s actions
(McCormick). The mind is either a blank slate or readily equipped with innate ideas according to
Empiricist and Rational theories, yet Kant introduced the idea that experience is only possible if
the mind’s systematic structuring enables it to.
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Conclusion
Immanuel Kant is recognized today as the last and perhaps most influential of the
philosophers of the Enlightenment Era of Modern Europe, having created a philosophical
revolution through his innovations in the fields of theology, science, and mathematics. The
affects of his ability to modernize the field of epistemology by critiquing metaphysics are still
prevalent today. Several could benefit from Kant’s extensive studies, findings, and queries.
Modern psychology is highly dependent on Kant’s theories in regards to the nature vs. nurture
debate, which directly parallels Kant’s Copernican Revolution. Locke, in believing in the tabula
rasa, would be supported by modern pro-nurture psychologists, who reflect the same ideas as
Empiricists did centuries ago. The same could be said for pro-nature psychologists and their
direct ties to the Rationalist movement, and Descartes’ idea of existence due to logic rather
than experience. The nature-nurture debate is gradually diminishing as more and more
psychologists realize that nature and nurture both work together to create the human psyche,
and this conclusion was most likely derived from Kant’s Revolution, for he had also noticed
centuries earlier this same realization. Kant’s ability to weave Empiricism and Rationalism
together, diminishing the one-sided, narrow perspective that had previously existed, could be
further studied and help resolve and understand the ideas of nature and nurture’s correlation.
It is therefore suggested that anyone pursuing this branch of psychology study Kant’s works.
Those who question reality and its components, as well as the nature of objects, should also
read into Kant’s critiques to gain a further understanding of synthetic a priori and its application
to the human psyche. Kant’s theories could be applied to any piece of literature, for the theory
of knowledge could be used to understand the mindset of characters, and why they perhaps
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choose to make certain choices or take part in certain actions, or in other words why they
choose to “do the things they do”. The theory of knowledge serves as the basis for several
literary techniques, such as those of foreshadowing, in providing a basis of understanding of a
character’s awareness of its surroundings. Immanuel Kant’s strong use of intellect and logic in
composing his theories, as well as their ability to apply to almost any scenario due to their
general and open-ended nature, allow them to be continuously referenced and applied
centuries after Kant’s death.
Immanuel Kant
Works Cited
McCormick, Matt. "Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) Metaphysics." The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
California State U, Sacramento, 2006. Web. 19 Oct. 2009. <http://www.utm.edu/research/iep/k/
kantmeta.htm>.
Ross, Kelly L. "Immanuel Kant (1724-1804)." The Proceedings of the Friesian School, Fourth Edition.
N.p., 2008. Web. 22 Oct. 2009. <http://www.friesian.com/kant.htm#idealism>.
Simons, John D. "Immanuel Kant." Dictionary of Literary Biography. Florida State U, 2005-2006. Web.
22 Oct. 2009. <http://www.bookrags.com/biography/immanuel-kant-dlb/4.html>.
Thomson Gale. "Immanuel Kant." World of Sociology. Thomson Corp, 2005-2006. Web. 22 Oct. 2009.
<http://www.bookrags.com/biography/immanuel-kant-soc/>.
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