1724–1804
Immanuel Kant
Kant spent his life in Königsberg. The Critique of Pure Reason (1781, revised 1787) argues that knowledge of nature requires both sensible intuition and concepts, and that traditional metaphysics overreaches when it claims knowledge of the soul, the world-whole, or God. The Groundwork (1785) argues that moral duty binds independently of inclination and of the sum of happiness. He is a bad fit for a simple rationalist-versus-empiricist score: he criticizes both sides.
Also in the atlas
- The limits of theoretical knowledge
- The categorical imperative
- Autonomy
Reading, not a syllabus ranking
- Critique of Pure Reason (1781/1787) — The conditions and the limits of theoretical knowledge.
- Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals (1785) — Duty, humanity as an end, and autonomy.
Questions for reflection
- Can a helpful lie still be forbidden?
- What is the difference between acting from duty and acting from a good result you happen to like?
Kant is the main reference for the deontological pole. His critical philosophy is coarser than any single NOEMA axis.