This is the first full-length biography in more than fifty years of Immanuel Kant, one of the giants amongst the pantheon of Western philosophers as well as the one with the most powerful and broad influence on contemporary philosophy. It is well known that Kant spent his entire life in an isolated part of Prussia living the life of a typical university professor. This has given rise to the view that Kant was a pure thinker with no life of his (...) own, or at least none worth considering seriously. In this biography, Manfred Kuehn debunks that myth once and for all. Taking account of the most recent scholarship Professor Kuehn allows the reader to follow the same journey that Kant himself took in emerging as a central figure in modern philosophy. (shrink)

This is the first full-length biography in more than fifty years of Immanuel Kant, one of the giants amongst the pantheon of Western philosophers as well as the one with the most powerful and broad influence on contemporary philosophy. It is well known that Kant spent his entire life in an isolated part of Prussia living the life of a typical university professor. This has given rise to the view that Kant was a pure thinker with no life of his (...) own, or at least none worth considering seriously. In this biography, Manfred Kuehn debunks that myth once and for all. Taking account of the most recent scholarship Professor Kuehn allows the reader to follow the same journey that Kant himself took in emerging as a central figure in modern philosophy. (shrink)

This work attempts to show that the Scottish common sense philosophers Thomas Reid, James Oswald and James Beattie, had a substantial influence upon the development of German thought during the period of the late enlightenment. Their works were thoroughly reviewed in German philosophical journals and translated into German soon after they had appeared in English. Whether it was Mendelssohn, a rationalist, Lossius, a materialist, Feder, a sensationalist, Tetens, a critical empiricist, or Hamann and Jacobi, irrationalist philosophers of faith, important philosophers (...) read the Scots and found them relevant for the solution of their problems. The Scots were seen as not just opposing Hume's skepticism, but also as complementing his more positive tenets. The most important chapter of this work shows that even Kant, who in this regard is known only for his devastating criticism of the Scots, learned much from them. It is argued that the Scottish influence opens a new perspective for the understanding of the German enlightenment, revealing how central were the twin problems of idealism versus realism, on the one hand, and of philosophical justification versus mere descriptive metaphysics, on the other. (shrink)

This monumental work features the most important German philosophers, jurists, pedagogues, literary critics, doctors, historians, and others whose work has philosophical significance who lived and wrote in the eighteenth century, covering the period between 1701 and 1801. The Dictionary includes work by philosophers whose mother tongue was German, were published in German or who lived in Germany for an extended period of time. Since historic borders are different from today's, the Dictionary includes authors born or who lived in places such (...) as Strasbourg, Danzig, Koenisberg, or Austria. Swiss philosophers are also covered. These philosophers published in German, Latin, French, and Hebrew. Since German philosophy cannot be understood without the influence of French and English philosophers, the work also includes translators and editors. Each entry aims to give the reader insight into the philosophers' life and contribution to the world of thought. Bibliographical references will help with further research. The entries include a biographical sketch, analysis of doctrines with emphasis on historical context, subsequent influences, and bibliography of further works and secondary literature. (shrink)

Originally published under title: Dictionary of eighteenth-century German philosophers: London: Continuum, 2010.

Title: BerkeleyPublisher: Oxford University PressISBN: 0192875469Author: J.O. UrmsonTitle: KantPublisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0192801996Author: Roger Scruton.

Title: BerkeleyPublisher: Oxford University PressISBN: 0192875469Author: J.O. UrmsonTitle: KantPublisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 0192801996Author: Roger Scruton.

146 JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY 34:1 JANUARY 1996 thought that the two were incompatible and opted for one or the other. Others, most notably Robert Boyle, "the Christian Virtuoso," thought that the two were compatible. The most reliable kind of person was the Christian gentleman, because he was a supposedly disinterested spectator. Physicians, chemists, schoolmen, priests, and pro- fessional authors all had professional or mercenary interests that made their testimony suspect. A large part of the book, especially chapters (...) 4 through 8, become a social and intellectual biography of Boyle. Since even gentlemen make mistakes, it became important for philosopher- scientists to devise criteria for reliable testimony. John Locke summarized these condi- tions within the dimensions of "multiplicity, plausibility, directness, knowledgeability, and the like." Part of being a gentleman was engaging in civil conversation. The rules of such conversation prohibited "the notions of truth, certainty, rigor, and precision" that were appropriate to "scholarly inquiry but out of place in civil conversation." One conse- quence of this was that Boyle was uneasy with the use of mathematics in experimental sciences. The requirements of civil conversation also excluded technicians from the scientific community proper. Although they in fact did much of the work upon which scientific progress depended, the gentlemen who employed these technicians spoke for them and took... (shrink)

The interpretation of Kant's Critical philosophy as a version of traditional idealism has a long history. In spite of Kant's and his commentators’ various attempts to distinguish between traditional and transcendental idealism, his philosophy continues to be construed as committed to various features usually associated with the traditional idealist project. As a result, most often, the accusation is that his Critical philosophy makes too strong metaphysical and epistemological claims.In his The Revolutionary Kant, Graham Bird engages in a systematic and thorough (...) evaluation of the traditionalist interpretation, as part of perhaps the most comprehensive and compelling defence of a revolutionary reading of Kant's thought. In the third part of this special issue, the exchanges between, on the one hand, Graham Bird and, on the other, Gary Banham, Gordon Brittan, Manfred Kuehn, Adrian Moore and Kenneth Westphal focus on specific aspects of Bird's interpretation of Kant's first Critique. More exactly, the emphasis is on specific aspects of Bird's interpretation of the Introduction, Analytic of Principles and Transcendental Dialectic of Kant's first Critique.The second part of the special issue is devoted to discussions of particular topics in Bird's construal of the remaining significant parts of the first Critique, namely, of the Transcendental Aesthetic and the Analytic of Concepts. Written by Sorin Baiasu and Michelle Grier, these articles examine specific issues in these two remaining parts of the Critique, from the perspective of the debate between the traditionalist and revolutionary interpretation. The special issue begins with an Introduction by the guest co-editors. This provides a summary of the exchanges between Bird and his critics, with a particular focus on the debates stemming from the differences between traditional and revolutionary interpretations of Kant. (shrink)

This book is the continuation of a project begun by the author in his Thinking Matter: Materialism in Eighteenth-Century Britain. In that work Yolton showed that Locke's suggestion that God might have given the power of thought to matter itself had significant effects in Britain. The present work makes clear that Locke's passing comment also had significant and quite varied effects in France. Yolton himself characterizes this book as telling the story of "the adventures of Locke's suggestion in France." These (...) adventures are for him "picaresque because of the way this suggestion appears, reappears, is attacked and defended in so many places and in such different contexts". (shrink)

146 JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY 34:1 JANUARY 1996 thought that the two were incompatible and opted for one or the other. Others, most notably Robert Boyle, "the Christian Virtuoso," thought that the two were compatible. The most reliable kind of person was the Christian gentleman, because he was a supposedly disinterested spectator. Physicians, chemists, schoolmen, priests, and pro- fessional authors all had professional or mercenary interests that made their testimony suspect. A large part of the book, especially chapters (...) 4 through 8, become a social and intellectual biography of Boyle. Since even gentlemen make mistakes, it became important for philosopher- scientists to devise criteria for reliable testimony. John Locke summarized these condi- tions within the dimensions of "multiplicity, plausibility, directness, knowledgeability, and the like." Part of being a gentleman was engaging in civil conversation. The rules of such conversation prohibited "the notions of truth, certainty, rigor, and precision" that were appropriate to "scholarly inquiry but out of place in civil conversation." One conse- quence of this was that Boyle was uneasy with the use of mathematics in experimental sciences. The requirements of civil conversation also excluded technicians from the scientific community proper. Although they in fact did much of the work upon which scientific progress depended, the gentlemen who employed these technicians spoke for them and took.. (shrink)

Anthropology from a Pragmatic Point of View essentially reflects the last lectures Kant gave for his annual course in anthropology, which he taught from 1772 until his retirement in 1796. The lectures were published in 1798, with the largest first printing of any of Kant's works. Intended for a broad audience, they reveal not only Kant's unique contribution to the newly emerging discipline of anthropology, but also his desire to offer students a practical view of the world and of humanity's (...) place in it. With its focus on what the human being 'as a free-acting being makes of himself or can and should make of himself,' the Anthropology also offers readers an application of some central elements of Kant's philosophy. This volume offers an annotated translation of the text by Robert B. Louden, together with an introduction by Manfred Kuehn that explores the context and themes of the lectures. (shrink)