The Enlightenment and Kant’s Philosophical Revolution
Historical and Sociocultural Context of the 18th Century
The Age of Revolutions
The 18th century witnessed significant revolutionary wars, including the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) and the French Revolution (1789). These upheavals were driven by Enlightenment ideals such as liberty, equality, and fraternity. This period also marked the beginning of the Industrial Revolution (circa 1750).
The Enlightenment: A Cultural and Intellectual Movement
The Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason, was a cultural and intellectual movement that emphasized reason, individualism, and humanism. Key figures of the Enlightenment include:
- Immanuel Kant: Known for his concept of “dare to know” (Sapere aude), encouraging individuals to think for themselves and challenge traditional authority.
- Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d’Alembert: Editors of the Encyclopédie (1751-1772), a comprehensive work that aimed to systematize human knowledge and “change the common way of thinking.”
Key characteristics of the Enlightenment:
- Emphasis on autonomous reason: Challenging religious dogma and promoting independent thought.
- Secularization of political and philosophical thought: Shifting focus from religious explanations to reason and observation.
- Focus on human dignity: Particularly evident in Kant’s philosophy, which emphasizes that humans are ends in themselves.
- Ideal of progress: Belief in the possibility of a just society through reason and scientific advancements, particularly influenced by Newtonian physics.
- Religious tolerance: Advocated by figures like Voltaire, promoting acceptance of different religious communities.
- Rise of the bourgeoisie: The growing influence of the middle class contributed to the rise of capitalism.
Political Landscape
England transitioned towards a constitutional monarchy, while continental Europe saw the rise of enlightened despotism. Figures like Frederick II of Prussia exemplified this approach, promoting intellectual freedom while maintaining absolute power.
Kant’s Philosophical Framework
Kant’s philosophy represents a synthesis of two preceding philosophical systems:
- Rationalism: Represented by Descartes, Leibniz, and Wolff, emphasizing the power of reason and the possibility of metaphysical knowledge.
- Empiricism: Represented by Locke, Berkeley, and Hume, emphasizing experience as the source of knowledge and questioning the possibility of metaphysics.
Influences on and Impact of Kant’s Thought
Influences
Kant was influenced by several key figures and movements:
- Wolff’s rationalism: Kant studied Wolff’s dogmatic metaphysics, which influenced his early views on the possibility of universal and necessary knowledge.
- Hume’s empiricism: Hume’s skepticism “awakened Kant from his dogmatic slumber,” leading him to acknowledge the limits of experience in acquiring knowledge.
- The Enlightenment: Kant was a key figure in the Enlightenment, influenced by Newton’s physics, which inspired his concept of synthetic a priori knowledge. He was also influenced by Rousseau’s ideas on freedom, morality, and the social contract.
- Plato and the Stoics: Kant was influenced by Plato’s concept of Ideas and the Stoic emphasis on duty and moral virtue.
Impact
Kant’s philosophy had a profound impact on subsequent thinkers:
- German Idealism: Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel radicalized Kant’s transcendental idealism, emphasizing the role of the subject in constructing knowledge.
- 19th-Century Thinkers: Marx critiqued capitalism through a Kantian lens, arguing that it objectifies individuals. Schopenhauer adopted Kant’s distinction between phenomenon and noumenon, identifying the latter with the will.
- Neo-Kantianism: Thinkers like Hermann Cohen and Paul Natorp synthesized Kant’s philosophy with contemporary thought.
- 20th-Century Philosophy: Wittgenstein was interested in the limits of language, echoing Kant’s concern with the limits of knowledge. Non-positivists followed Kant and Hume in their skepticism towards metaphysical knowledge.
- Ethical Theory: Kant’s ethics influenced figures like John Rawls, whose concept of the “veil of ignorance” reflects Kantian universalism. Other ethical theorists, such as Sartre and Habermas, also engaged with Kant’s ideas on freedom, morality, and communicative action.