Kant: A Complete Introduction

by Robert Wicks

Written by Robert Wicks, a recognised Kant specialist who teaches at the University of Auckland, A Complete Introduction is designed to give you everything you need to succeed, all in one place. It covers the key areas that students are expected to be confident in, outlining the basics in clear jargon-free English, and then providing added-value features like summaries of key books, and even lists of questions you might be asked in your seminar or exam.

The book uses a structure that mirrors many university courses on Freud and psychoanalysis - explaining and contextualising Kant's theories, which have been among the most influential in Philosophy. The book starts by introducing Kant and his way of thinking and arguing, before looking at how Kant answered three key What can I know? What should I do? What may I hope? In doing so, Professor Wicks introduces the reader to all of Kant's key work, including The Critique of Pure Reason.

Teach Yourself titles employ the 'Breakthrough method', which is designed specifically to overcome problems that students face.
- "I find it difficult to remember what I've read."; this book includes end-of-chapter questions and summaries, and flashcards of key points available on-line and as apps
- "Most books mention important other sources, but I can never find them in time."; this book includes key texts and case studies are summarised, complete with fully referenced quotes ready to use in your essay or exam.
- "Lots of introductory books turn out to cover totally different topics than my course."; this book is written by a current university lecturer who understands what students are expected to know.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Associate Professor Robert Lawrence Wicks

There is more than one author with this name. See also: Robert Wicks & Robert J. Wicks

Reviews

[WarpDrive · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much better than I expected. Lucid, informative, succinct but generally with good level of detail, especially in relation to critical parts such as Kant's theory of knowledge. Clear, coherent and conceptually precise, without any glaring oversimplification.
And, at least as far as I can tell, quite faithful to the actual Kantian epistemological approach.
Written for undergraduate students by the brilliant Robert Wicks, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Auckland.

[Anartam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent introduction to Kant’s thought. By far, it’s the most didactic, clear, complete and easy to read introduction to Kant I know. Professor Wicks’ book requires no previous knowledge and the reader can work through the material easily, without getting lost in details.
Kant is a very difficult philosopher and his work is very hard to grasp. Some introductions are not intended for beginners, since they assume the reader has some philosophical background.
This is not the case with this introduction. If you are a beginner, an undergraduate student looking for a place to start, this is the right book.
I didn’t know Prof. Wicks’ works, but I am very glad I came across this nice book. A gem, indeed.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

So there was crystal clear exposition until page 100. I don't know if there was a deadline to meet or if the author just got tired? I've seen this a lot, and I've also done it before. But anyway,
it's interesting because when I was reading through The Philosophy Book by DK, I found this in the Kant section: "Saying that I exist requires a determinate point in time and this in turn requires an actually existing outside world in which time takes place. My level of certainty about the existence of the external world is thus precisely the same as my certainty about the existence of consciousness, which Descartes believed was absolutely certain." This argument does make sense to me, and Kant may have said this somewhere else, but based on the material covered in this book, I got a different sense of his thoughts about the topic. Ostensibly, Kant thinks that you can't really sense your true self because your sense of your true self and your sense of the outside world are both filtered through the internal mental framework of space and time (and other things). So that's why you can be as certain of your self as you can be of the outside world. Correct me if I'm wrong.
All this is very interesting to think about, especially when related to AI, and potentially our brain. It's almost like space and time are our input dimensions. Information is required to actually flow into the input, but our input dimensions are set.
Also, he completely lost me with his moral theory (ha, I think I'm resistant to the idea of self respect). Given, I don't know if I've ever been convinced by any moral theory. It's very pervasive though, especially in kindergartens:
"Would you like it if they threw the scissors at you? No? Then you shouldn't throw it at them."

[Binyomin Glinsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most clear, straightforward, engaging, and understandable introduction to Kant. Much of the book focuses on the Critique of Pure Reason. This book played a supporting role in my endeavor into Kant's theory of knowledge. I found this to be the most helpful and orienting book. Whenever I did not understand something in the CPR itself or in Hall's "Arguments for Kant's CPR", I would turn to this book. I was always able to understand what was being said and how it fit into Kant's bigger picture. Highly recommend for anyone who wants to read the CPR, but also for anyone who wants to dip their toe into the waters of Kant.

[Arthur Drury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing clarity.

[Chad Hogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a number of reasons I have been drawn to Immanuel Kant. I think one reason is I'm drawn to the extremely logical way he approaches topics and doesn't really pull punches or thumb the scales on what he wants to believe. I'm also extremely interested in epistemology. The way he bridged Hume's empiricism with the rationalists (a priori synthetic knowledge) was clever. He has an interesting approach to the existence of God.

I'd like to think that someday I will actually read Critique of Pure Reason (instead of just bits and pieces and other reference material) but I'm not sure I would ever be able to get through it and/or really understand what I am reading.

I was just starting to get a better grasp on some of Kant's arguments prior to reading this book. I thought this book (to be ready prior to reading the actual work which I had been looking for) would dumb down the arguments just enough so that all the pieces would fall into place. Alas, while there was definitely some elucidation, there are some areas that I am still completely lost and I thought the book fell short in untangling. Overall a good book but I might need to read this one again, and a few others before reading the actual work.

[Avesta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read, Wicks has in great detail discussed Kant's life, and much of his work, as well as the work of those he influenced and of those he was influenced by, such as Aristotle. The use of 'spotlight' and 'key idea' subsections in the chapters throughout the book are absolutely perfect for mastering the concepts, especially if you're short for time. The further reading suggestions at the end of each chapter are pretty awesome additions as well, but I just wish Wicks had recommended some of Freud's works, as he discusses how Freud's work was influenced by Kant, but doesn't say which ones, which is a shame - I really wanted to explore Freud's interpretations further.

Highly recommended to any maths and/or philosophy student.

[Silah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly recommended.

For those who are new to philosophy or before starting to read Kant, this book should be the starting point; as it lays the foundation in a subtle and comprehending manner.

[James O'Neill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very clear and easy to understand

A very accessible and well worded book with great analogies that takes an abstract thinker and makes him understandable to a variety of readers.

[Ming Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good.