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Spotlight: Immanuel Kant
Königsberg Portrait of Immanuel Kant by an unknown artist, c. 1790 (presumed destroyed)
Immanuel Kant was one of the most influential philosophers in the Western intellectual tradition. Born in 1724 A.D. and raised in Königsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad — the city was part of the Kingdom of Prussia from the eighteenth century until the end of World War II, when it was annexed by the Soviet Union). Kant spent nearly his entire life in Königsberg, where he studied, taught, and wrote at the university there. His early education was shaped by Pietism, which emphasized moral discipline and religious devotion, while his philosophical development was profoundly influenced by the scientific revolution led by Isaac Newton and the rationalism of thinkers such as Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz and Christian Wolff. At the same time, the sceptical empiricism of David Hume challenged Kant's confidence in human knowledge, prompting what Kant called his ‘awakening from dogmatic slumber.’
Kant sought to reconcile the strengths of rationalism and empiricism through a revolutionary approach known as transcendental idealism. His three great critiques (the first of which he published at age 57) were Critique of Pure Reason (1781), Critique of Practical Reason (1788), and Critique of Judgment (1790). Together, these treatises transformed philosophy by examining the limits and capacities of human reason. He argued that while our knowledge begins with experience, the mind actively structures experience through innate categories such as space, time, and causality. In ethics, Kant proposed that morality is grounded not in consequences or emotions but in reason itself. His categorical imperative, which commands individuals to act only according to principles they could consistently will to become universal laws, became one of the most enduring formulations of moral duty in Western philosophy.
Kant's influence extended far beyond philosophy. His ideas shaped modern ethics, political theory, aesthetics, theology, and the philosophy of science, while inspiring later thinkers such as Hegel and Schopenhauer. His emphasis on human dignity, autonomy, and the rule of law also contributed to modern discussions of human rights and liberal constitutionalism.
The British philosopher Roger Scruton regarded Kant as one of the indispensable architects of Western Civilisation. Although Scruton criticized aspects of Kant's transcendental idealism, he admired Kant's defence of objective moral obligation, personal responsibility, and the unique capacity of rational persons to recognize beauty, truth, and duty. Kant's moral philosophy and aesthetics strongly influenced Scruton's own work, especially his defence of beauty, culture, and the moral foundations of a free society. Through both agreement and respectful criticism, Scruton helped demonstrate Kant's continuing relevance, showing that his ideas remain central to understanding the intellectual and moral heritage of the West.
Verse: 'Portrait of a Lady’ by T.S. Eliot
Among the smoke and fog of a December afternoon
You have the scene arrange itself — as it will seem to do—
With 'I have saved this afternoon for you';
And four wax candles in the darkened room,
Four rings of light upon the ceiling overhead,
An atmosphere of Juliet's tomb
Prepared for all the things to be said, or left unsaid.
We have been, let us say, to hear the latest Pole
Transmit the Preludes, through his hair and finger-tips.
'So intimate, this Chopin, that I think his soul
Should be resurrected only among friends
Some two or three, who will not touch the bloom
That is rubbed and questioned in the concert room.'
—And so the conversation slips
Among velleities and carefully caught regrets
Through attenuated tones of violins
Mingled with remote cornets
And begins.
'You do not know how much they mean to me, my friends,
And how, how rare and strange it is, to find
In a life composed so much, so much of odds and ends,
(For indeed I do not love it ... you knew? you are not blind!
How keen you are!)
To find a friend who has these qualities,
Who has, and gives
Those qualities upon which friendship lives.
How much it means that I say this to you —
Without these friendships — life, what cauchemar!'
Among the winding of the violins
And the ariettes
Of cracked cornets
Inside my brain a dull tom-tom begins
Absurdly hammering a prelude of its own,
Capricious monotone
That is at least one definite 'false note.'
— Let us take the air, in a tobacco trance,
Admire the monuments,
Discuss the late events,
Correct our watches by the public clocks.
Then sit for half an hour and drink our bocks.
‘Portrait of a Lady’ was published in 1917. Above is the first stanza, but you can find the rest here.
Pensées
‘Morality is not properly the doctrine of how we may make ourselves happy, but how we may make ourselves worthy of happiness.’ — Immanuel Kant, Critique of Pure Reason
According to Kant, happiness is related to the fulfillment of duty. We ought not circumscribe our morals to suit expedient ends, but rather, live a life of virtue and fulfill our obligations to those around us because our reason requires it. Happiness is never guaranteed, but at least if we live virtuously, we will cultivate a life of dignity and worth.
Q: Today it is taken for granted that the pursuit of pleasure offers us the greatest guarantee of happiness. What do you think? Was Kant closer to the mark?
Diversions
10 of Frank Sinatra’s best, according to The Guardian.
Watch: from novice to natural: a guide to enjoying your first cigar.
The most expensive painting in the world? Da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi (rumoured to be on the Saudi Crown Prince’s $500M yacht).
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