Synopses & Reviews
Richard L. Velkley offers a new interpretation of the central issue of Kant's philosophy and a new evaluation of its position within the history of modern philosophy. He persuasively argues that the whole of Kantianism, not merely the Second Critique, is really a "critique of practical reason" and a response to a problem Kant saw as intrinsic to reason: the teleological problem of reason's goodness. By stressing a Rousseau-inspired notion of reason as a provider of practical ends, Velkley also is able to offer an unusually complete account of Kant's idea of moral culture.
Drawing upon Kant's precritical writing of the 1760s, Velkley effectively argues that Rousseau showed Kant that the purely instrumental view of reason as the mere slave of passions—a view advanced by such Enlightenment thinkers as Hobbes, Locke, and Hume—was self-defeating. Their modern conception of reason attempts to emancipate humanity from superhuman powers and authorities, but it paradoxically brings about the deeper enslavement of humanity to its own artifacts and passions. Rousseau's thought provided Kant with certain decisive elements in his account of reason, especially through a new concept of freedom, that enabled Kant to establish the foundation for a coherent version of the Enlightenment, one that reconciles modern emancipation from "dogmatism" with the human need for the sacred, the noble, and the beautiful.
In reconstructing the influence of Rousseau on Kant's thought, Velkley demonstrates that the relation between speculative philosophy and practical philosophy in Kant is far more intimate than has been generally perceived. The "dialogue" of Kant with Rousseau in the 1760s begins the debate on the soundness of the modern "enlightenment" understanding of the relation of reason to society and the human good, a debate that is continued by the major Continental philosophers. Velkley's formidable study establishes that the later modern reforms—new ideas of freedom, history, and culture, which replace human nature as the ground for knowledge of the human good—have their primary roots in Kant's encounter with Rousseau.
Review
“Velkley handles his subject with skill and style, moving easily from Rousseau to Kant, and from the latters earlier to his later works. This is a significant piece of scholarship not merely for its historical insights but also because of the new focus it provides for interpreting Kants philosophy as a whole.”
Review
“Velkley has produced an outstanding philosophical work on the late modern problem of the relation between reason and freedom.”
Review
“The picture of Kant that emerges from this fascinating study is at once richer and more complex than the straw man who often appears in the works of defenders and detractors alike.”
Review
“Velkleys reconstruction of Kants encounter with Rousseau is sufficiently interesting to reward the reader of this thoughtful and impressively researched book. By leaving aside stale debates about ‘influence in favor of an account of how one philosopher creatively responded to the challenges posed by another, Velkley provides a useful model of how scholars should deal with encounters between great minds.”
Synopsis
In
Freedom and the End of Reason, Richard L. Velkley offers an influential interpretation of the central issue of Kants philosophy and an evaluation of its position within modern philosophys larger history. He persuasively argues that the whole of Kantianismnot merely the Second Critiquefocuses on a critique of practical reason” and is a response to a problem that Kant saw as intrinsic to reason itself: the teleological problem of its goodness. Reconstructing the influence of Rousseau on Kants thought, Velkley demonstrates that the relationship between speculative philosophy and practical philosophy in Kant is far more intimate than generally has been perceived. By stressing a Rousseau-inspired notion of reason as a provider of practical ends, he is able to offer an unusually complete account of Kants idea of moral culture.
About the Author
Richard L. Velkley is the Celia Scott Weatherhead Professor of Philosophy at Tulane University. He is the author of many books, including
Being after Rousseau and
Heidegger, Strauss, and the Premises of Philosophy, both also published by the University of Chicago Press.
Table of Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
Introduction
The Problem of the End of Reason in Kant's Philosophy
The Primacy of the Practical End of Reason
Rousseau's Insight
The Highest Good and the End of Reason
A Prospectus of the Argument
1. The Revolution in the End of Reason: Some Principal Themes
The Revision of Modern Foundations
The Critique of Instrumental Reason
The Crisis in the Relation of Metaphysics to Common Reason
Rousseau's Protest against Modern Enlightenment
Kantian Philosophy as Transcendental Practice
2. The Teleological Problem in Modern Individualism
Individualism and Moral Sense
Rousseau's Challenge to Moral Sense
The Teleological Problem in Rousseau
3. Kant's Discovery of a Solution, 1764-65
History, Nature, and Perfection
Will, Reason, and Spontaneity
The Analysis of Passion: Honor and Benevolence
Justice and Equality
Common Reason and the End of Science
4. The Origins of Modern Moral Idealism, 1765-80
The Unity of Freedom and Nature as Ideal Goal
The Failures of Ancient Moral Idealism
Morality as System
Socratic Metaphysics as Science of the End and the Limit of Reason
The Dialectic of the Pure Concepts of the Whole
5. Culture and the Practical Interpretation of the End of Reason, 1781-1800
The Ultimate End of Theoretical Inquiry
Philosophy's "Idea" and Its History
Culture's Contradictions and Their Ideal Resolution
Epilogue
Notes
Index