Practical Philosophy

by Immanuel Kant, Allen W. Wood (Introduction), Mary J. Gregor (Editor)

This is the first English translation of all of Kant's writings on moral and political philosophy collected in a single volume. No other collection competes with the comprehensiveness of this one. As well as Kant's most famous moral and political writings, the Groundwork to the Metaphysics of Morals, the Critique of Practical Reason, the Metaphysics of Morals, and Toward Perpetual Peace, the volume includes shorter essays and reviews, some of which have never been translated before. There is also an English-German and German-English glossary of key terms.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, 18th Century, Politics, Anthologies, Classics, German Literature

706 pages, Paperback

First published October 28, 1996

About the author

Immanuel Kant was an 18th-century philosopher from Königsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia). He's regarded as one of the most influential thinkers of modern Europe & of the late Enlightenment. His most important work is The Critique of Pure Reason, an investigation of reason itself. It encompasses an attack on traditional metaphysics & epistemology, & highlights his own contribution to these areas. Other main works of his maturity are The Critique of Practical Reason, which is about ethics, & The Critique of Judgment, about esthetics & teleology.

Pursuing metaphysics involves asking questions about the ultimate nature of reality. Kant suggested that metaphysics can be reformed thru epistemology. He suggested that by understanding the sources & limits of human knowledge we can ask fruitful metaphysical questions. He asked if an object can be known to have certain properties prior to the experience of that object. He concluded that all objects that the mind can think about must conform to its manner of thought. Therefore if the mind can think only in terms of causality–which he concluded that it does–then we can know prior to experiencing them that all objects we experience must either be a cause or an effect. However, it follows from this that it's possible that there are objects of such a nature that the mind cannot think of them, & so the principle of causality, for instance, cannot be applied outside experience: hence we cannot know, for example, whether the world always existed or if it had a cause. So the grand questions of speculative metaphysics are off limits, but the sciences are firmly grounded in laws of the mind. Kant believed himself to be creating a compromise between the empiricists & the rationalists. The empiricists believed that knowledge is acquired thru experience alone, but the rationalists maintained that such knowledge is open to Cartesian doubt and that reason alone provides us with knowledge. Kant argues, however, that using reason without applying it to experience will only lead to illusions, while experience will be purely subjective without first being subsumed under pure reason. Kant’s thought was very influential in Germany during his lifetime, moving philosophy beyond the debate between the rationalists & empiricists. The philosophers Fichte, Schelling, Hegel and Schopenhauer saw themselves as correcting and expanding Kant's system, thus bringing about various forms of German Idealism. Kant continues to be a major influence on philosophy to this day, influencing both Analytic and Continental philosophy.

Reviews

[Billie Pritchett]

UPDATED REVIEW: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 (no rating)

Kant was so strange. When he talked philosophy at the most abstract levels, he could produce plausible frameworks that can help us understand mind and morals. But the closer he gets to the humdrum rails, the more his musings simply go off the rails.

First, to the good stuff. His essay "An Answer to the Question: What Is Enlightment?" is a cornerstone work. Indeed, our very understanding of what the Enlightenment stems from Kant's conception in this very essay. Enlightenment is the choice to think for ourselves independent of whatever an authority figure tells us. Small children shouldn't think for themselves, because they haven't developed the cognitive capacities. But we're not children, Kant says, and as much as we may admire a book or regard some person as role model, etc., we don't need these people and things to think for us.

More good stuff. Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals. This little, powerful book was revolutionary for ethics, simple as its main point is, which goes like this. We're subject to the natural world with all its limitations but we have this cognitive capacity to reason, to think for ourselves, and to choose principles that would be consistent for not only ourselves but any rational being to hold. The ability to act on principles which would hold for everybody is the only broad formula we need to know what the right thing to do is. Could the principle reasonably hold for not only ourselves but for others? Then it's the right thing to do. This view gives legs to why traditional moral precepts make sense. Don't lie, don't cheat, don't steal, don't murder: all are instances when the rule reasonably applies to everyone. Acting in accordance with this general formula is the only freedom worth having, says Kant. We are a lawgiver unto ourselves, and if we give ourselves the best laws under the best of wills, things can go as well as they can.

Now for the bad stuff. Critique of Practical Reason, as much as it's a reiteration of the Groundwork, actually introduces a bunch of complications and just muddies waters. And the sequel to the Groundwork, The Metaphysics of Morals, is this crazy fetishization of the state, particularly the Prussian state that Kant was subject to. In the latter work, Kant thinks he can justify, for instance, why capital punishment is always right, why children born outside marriage don't qualify as citizens, why there is no right to rebellion even under the most oppressive state— I could go on and on. That said, there are still some ideas in here that have legs. One is his idea of how we need to instruct a "moral catechism" to guide the youth. (His proposal is not bad; read to find out.) And while certainly wrong in particulars, his ideas about sex and sexuality are interesting.

There are other texts that are worth talking about that I am of course neglecting, but let's stop here.

ORIGINAL REVIEW: October 14, 2016 (three stars)

Immanuel Kant never wrote a book called Practical Philosophy. This book is instead a collection of all of his writings on so-called 'practical philosophy'--mainly his ethics. I didn't enjoy most of the collection because a majority of them are obscure works by Kant. There is some top-notch material in the collection, though.

Worth reading is one of the most important works of ethics called Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals. In this work, Kant advocates an ethics of being consistent to moral principles that you would wish anybody to have. Another work adjacent to that is On a Supposed Right to Lie. Just to show you how strong Kant's ethical position is, he argues that if you really believe that it is wrong to lie, you should even tell the truth to an axe murderer at the door looking for someone you're hiding! Really. And really odd. Two other works, Critique of Practical Reason and Metaphysics of Morals are also worth a look, but most of the basic ideas were already there in the Groundwork.

"What is Enlightenment?" and "Toward Perpetual Peace" are important and influential works. The former essay is one of the clearest expressions ever of what the Age of Enlightenment meant for Europe in the 18th century. "Toward Perpetual Peace," which advocates a coalition of nations, was a major impetus to the United Nations.

Again, worth reading those works but was not too interested in the others.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gregor’s translations seem very accurate, and that’s a good thing, but they tend to be extremely wordy and wooden in a way that other Kant translators, such as Guyer and Wood, manage not to be.

[Zelai Xu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kinda get what he tries to say, probably not my type

[Braden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Props to the team at Cambridge for these spectacular editions of the works of Kant. Absolutely invaluable critical English editions of his work. The book is worth it for the scholarship alone. Great translations as well.

As for Kant himself, he is difficult to assess. On the one hand, he offers captivating insights within the historical development and trajectory of philosophy, some of which hold relevant themes to ponder in contemporary thought. On the other hand, I find a lot of his ideas troubling and antiquated. I also believe (contrary to many others) that he is a great literary talent, although this is scarcely evident given the density and complexity of his writing (he really needed an editor). I think it is worth struggling through his works, however, especially the Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, which offers a very compelling treatment of the issue of practical freedom.

Worth taking the dive if you are interested. I’m not convinced his system offers us the most compelling way to do philosophy, however, nor that it sets practical philosophy in particularly solid or universal ground.

[Jack Moriarty · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a phenomenal collection of Kant’s works. I recommend “Answering the question” and “Groundwork,” the others are a bit odd and with his writing style very difficult to sift through for my pea brain. Highly recommend some of the work. I cannot recommend “Critique” or “Metaphysics” to those who don’t fancy falling out of love with the written word itself.

[poznavací]

Only read "Answering the Question: What Is Enlightenment?" and what an essay that is! Mind blowing and clever; yet fundamental to the essence of knowledge.
Sapere aude!

[Rodney Nelsestuen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kant continues to baffle in places, but his impact on western thought is undeniable.

[Orest Mercator]

First critique > Second critique🤷‍♂️

[JosephTheBald]

Finished *Groundwork*
Future readings will be completed.

My notes

[Michel · Rating 3 out of 5]

My respects to anyone who has read this book in its entirety, including myself. Not only because we have survived this challenging experience (phyiscal and mental), but also because it is a moral duty to respect others as particular instances of the idea of humanity made possible by the universality of the principles of the practical reason, as Kant explains.

Groundwork gets 1 Star, whereas Metaphysics of Morals, Perpetual Peace, and The Second Critique deserve almost 4 stars. Thus the average point.

[Alan Johnson]

For my remarks on several of Kant’s writings contained in this volume, see my posts 187-88, 192, 196, 199, 203, and 225-226 in the “Immanuel Kant” topic of the “Political Philosophy and Ethics” Goodreads discussion group.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

In regards to Critique of Practical Reason:
Filled with brilliance and confusion. I think I know what he is saying and think it is a valuable to view morality. But, I've never taken a class on Kant...

[TJ]

Philosophy 462 Kant's Moral Philosophy