Synopses & Reviews
In the fall semester of 1772/73 at the Albertus University of Königsberg, Immanuel Kant, metaphysician and professor of logic and metaphysics, began lectures on anthropology, which he continued until 1776, shortly before his retirement from public life. His lecture notes and papers were first published in 1798, eight years after the publication of the Critique of Judgment, the third of his famous Critiques. The present edition of the Anthropology is a translation of the text found in volume 7 of Kants gesammelte Schriften, edited by Oswald Külpe.
Kant describes the Anthropology as a systematic doctrine of the knowledge of humankind. (He does not yet distinguish between the academic discipline of anthropology as we understand it today and the philosophical.) Kants lectures stressed the "pragmatic" approach to the subject because he intended to establish pragmatic anthropology as a regular academic discipline. He differentiates the physiological knowledge of the human racethe investigation of "what Nature makes of man"from the pragmatic"what man as a free being makes of himself, what he can make of himself, and what he ought to make of himself." Kant believed that anthropology teaches the knowledge of humankind and makes us familiar with what is pragmatic, not speculative, in relation to humanity. He shows us as world citizens within the context of the cosmos.
Summarizing the cloth edition of the Anthropology, Library Journal concludes: "Kants allusions to such issues as sensation, imagination, judgment, (aesthetic) taste, emotion, passion, moral character, and the character of the human species in regard to the ideal of a cosmopolitan society make this work an important resource for English readers who seek to grasp the connections among Kants metaphysics of nature, metaphysics of morals, and political theory. The notes of the editor and translator, which incorporate material from Ernst Cassirers edition and from Kants marginalia in the original manuscript, shed considerable light on the text."
Review
"There are many insights into Kants own ch
Review
"There are many insights into Kants own character and his philosophical orientation. . . . There are a helpful introduction, extensive notes both on the content and on details of translation, and an index. The book is comparable to Kants Lectures on Ethics (1780). . . . though briefer and more lively and accessible. It is a good introduction to Kants philosophy and a valuable supplement to Kant collections at all levels."Choice
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [255]-289) and index.
About the Author
Victor L. Dowdell was an instructor in classics at Nashotah House, Wisconsin, and a dean and professor of Greek at St. Michaels Seminary, Puerto Rico.
Hans H. Rudnick is a professor of English at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.