Kantian Idea Research Articles

Влияние спекулятивной философии И. Канта на становление и концептуализацию онтологической школы Московской духовной академии

The article delves into the analysis of philosophical reception of Kantian ideas by representatives of the onto-logical school of the Moscow Theological Academy F.A. Golubinsky and V.D. Kudryavtsev-Platonov. I. Kant’s critical philosophy aroused genuine interest among professors of theological academies, since Kantian tran-scendentalism was a method rather than a competing system of philosophical metaphysics, nevertheless, at-tempts to combine the achievements of Kantian thought and theistic attitudes revealed obvious contradictions between the constants of the two systems. The influence of Kant’s critical thought on the philosophical tradition of the Moscow Theological Academy is assessed by researchers in a mixed way: they note the doctrinal ap-proach in criticizing Kantian positions, as well as the eclectic nature of academic concepts, in which thinkers tried to strike a balance between the rigor of Kantian discourse and the postulates of Orthodox Christian theism. Meanwhile, the critical assessment of the ideas and concepts of Kantian philosophy, the reinterpretation of its terms did not lead academic thinkers beyond its basic principles. The author notes the systemic nature of the influence, which consists in the branching of the method and structure of I. Kant’s speculative thought in the philosophical constructions of the ontological school.

Фабио Джирони. Что для нас сделал Кант? Спекулятивный реализм и динамическое кантианство (перевод О. А. Лунева-Коробского)

This publication is a Russian translation of F. Gironi’s paper devoted to a panoramic survey of attempts to relativize Kantian ideas about a priori knowledge. Gironi reconstructs various approaches and interpretations, focusing on the ideas of C. I. Lewis, H. Reichenbach, W. Sellars, and M. Friedman within the context of scientific realism, and relates such forms of dynamic Kantianism to recent speculative projects based on a critique or rejection of Kant’s legacy. In doing so, the author argues that Kant’s ideas on a priori conceptual structures form the core of debates about the role of philosophy vis-a-vis science, as opposed to variants of metaphysics and philosophy of science, which replace the so-called correlationist paradigm of transcendental critique with unconstrained speculation that falls out of step with the realities of modern science. The naturalized Kantianism of W. Sellars appears to be the most promising starting point for subsequent speculative – and transcendental – endeavours in the field of conceptualizing meta-conceptual frameworks that would meet the need to regulate and systematize the reality of scientific discourse. This is precisely what speculative realism, consistent with what we owe to Kant’s philosophy, is supposed to be.

Was Kant a naive pacifist? (philosophical considerations and the background of the russian-ukrainian war)

The article is devoted to I. Kant's views on the problem of war and peace and the possibility of achieving "perpetual peace" on the basis of the pamphlet "To Eternal Peace" and some other late works of the thinker. In particular, attention is paid to the historical background of the appearance of the work as a certain completion of moral philosophy and philosophy of law in the context of developing one's own project of "eternal peace" taking into account the solution of specific problems of foreign policy at the end of the 18th century. The article examines a kind of Kantian "formula of peace", which claims universal significance. It is laid out in the preliminary and especially in the definitive articles of the imaginary contract. It is argued that it is based on three main principles: republicanism, federalism and the presence of a cosmopolitan citizenship limited to hospitality. These principles are complemented by the so-called "guarantees" of "perpetual peace": the progress of law and the spirit of international trade. The article analyzes apologetic and critical responses to Kant's work and its subsequent interpretations in European philosophy and political thought. In particular, special attention is paid to the interpretation of his work as a "pacifist manifesto". Based on this, it was argued that Kant was one of the founders of secular pacifism. The article reasonably refutes such a position on the basis of its anachronism and inconsistency with the views of Kant himself, who considered "eternal peace" only as a higher normative ideal of foreign policy. The influence of Kantian ideas on the formation of modern philosophy of international relations, in particular the theory of democratic peace (DPT), is indicated. It is indicated that the three main principles of Kant's formula of "eternal peace" found their embodiment in the postulates of this theory. At the same time, it is noted that the practice of implementing DPT in US foreign policy has not always had positive consequences. In this regard, the problem of its application to the analysis of the causes and course of the Russian-Ukrainian war is analyzed. There are different positions on this matter, but based on the latest publications and the real course of events. It is concluded that the "militant" version of DPT can be useful for achieving our victory and a just, fair and worthy peace.

Имануел Кант за свободата като морална категория

The article is dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the birth of the great German thinker and philosopher Immanuel Kant and analyzes his conceptions of the moral category of freedom. Based on a review and analysis of the philosopher's ideas in the three "critiques" and his other writings, an attempt is made to determine the specificity of Kant's understanding of moral freedom, as well as to find the connections it makes to some modern dimensions of the problem. Comments of Bulgarian and foreign philosophers on the relevant topic, which enrich the existing knowledge on the problem, are also examined. Conclusions concern the enduring importance of Kantian ideas for modern notions of freedom, publicity, independence, and the significance of truth.

A Concept of Complementarity Between Complexity and Redundancy can Account for Kant's Biological Teleology and Unify Mechanistic and Finalistic Biology.

Over 160years after Darwin and 70years after the discovery of DNA, two fundamental questions of biology remain unanswered: What differentiates the living from the nonliving? How can mechanistic and finalistic or holistic biology be unified? Niels Bohr introduced a concept of complementarity in quantum physics and based on the paradox of light as a simultaneous wave and particle, conjectured that a similar concept might exist in biology that would solve the paradox of life originating from the nonliving. Bohr proposed that two mutually exclusive-independent observations may be necessary to explain a phenomenon and provided support to Immanuel Kant's idea that the "purposive" behaviour of organisms could only be explained in teleological terms and that mechanical and teleological approaches were necessary and complementary to explain biology. We present a concept of complementarity whereby biochemical pathways or cellular channels for the flow of information are simultaneously complex and redundant and complexity and redundancy complement each other. The postulates of biological complementarity are that (1) it was an essential condition in the origin of life; (2) it provided physiological flexibility that allowed organisms to mount self-protection response and complexity to evolve in the face of deleterious mutations before the evolution of bi-parental sex; (3) it laid the foundation for the evolution of a choice of response when confronted with threat; and (4) it applies to all levels of biological organizations and, thus, can serve as a basis for the unification of mechanistic and holistic biology. It is proposed that teleology is simultaneously constitutive and heuristic: constitutive because organisms' "purposive" behaviours are adaptive and are grounded in mechanism (complexity and redundancy), and heuristic because with our finite cognition and our goal-oriented (humans alone are aware of "tomorrow") and anthropomorphic pre-disposition, teleology will remain useful as a guide to our making sense of the world, even how to ask a meaningful question.

Философия форм и понятий в концептуальном и терминологическом измерении

The article critically analyzes one of the main lines of philosophy, which is designated as the philosophy of forms and concepts. The main stages in the formation of a philosophy of this type are identified, which culminates in two fundamental principles: in the Kantian idea of the formation of objects through internal forms from the primary material of sen­sations and in the Hegelian idea of the identity of being and thinking. The question of the natural and unnatural origin of concepts and the concept of form is discussed. “Concept” and “form” are terms that claim to be a direct expression of formative and comprehending thinking, denote two interrelated procedures: firstly, the removal of forms from objectivity, the transfer of forms into the “cognitive ability” and endowing them with the status of internal principles that form objects; secondly, the identification of an object and its meaning, and their mutual transformation in dynamics. Form is both a function of the concept that synthesizes the object and its meaning in identification, and its condition. Bergson’s criticism of the philosophy of “Forms and Ideas” is analyzed in connection with his doctrine of duration. Deleuze and Guattari’s thesis (in the book “What is Philosophy?”) that philosophy is the invention of concepts and its justification is also the subject of analysis. In this regard, the issue of translating the term “concept” into Russian is being considered. The article raises the question of a terminological turn in historical and philosophical research as a necessary element in the analysis of philo­sophical doctrines and problems. The question is also raised about non-conceptual think­ing as differentiation and distinction of differences.

Legal-philosophical Foundations of Open Access: Bridging New Copyright Law with Kantian Ideas of Public and Private Reason

Legal-philosophical Foundations of Open Access: Bridging New Copyright Law with Kantian Ideas of Public and Private Reason

Русский политический Кант после либерализма: С. И. Гессен о юбилее Канта в 1924 году

Using the Kant jubilee in 1924 as a pretext, Sergey Hessen, a Russian émigré neo­Kantian, draws no direct political conclusions but sets forth a view of the great philosopher’s legacy from the position of a “legal socialist”, selecting from his heritage those parts of German socialist doctrines that to his mind experienced a departure from a recent flowering of Kantian ideas in Neo­Kantianism and the collapse of traditional liberalism in the wake of the First World War. The fact that the text was first published in the Berlin­based Russian liberal newspaper “Rul’”, gives us reason to see it not just as a formal jubilee tribute, but as an act addressed to the qualified liberal audience which witnessed thecollapse of liberalism in Russia.

Kant and “tabula Russia”

The article offers an attempt to understand the present state of Kant’s legacy in Russia on the threshold of the Tercentenary. An explanans is found in the metaphors of “tabula rasa” and “unplowed virgin soil,” first used by Leibniz in relation to Russia in his letters and memoranda addressed to tsar Peter I and other members of the Russian elite, which became the country’s “absolute metaphors to live by” up to present time. Several known and unknown episodes from the history of the reception of Kantian ideas, his followers in Russia, and the transformation of the urban environment of Kant’s life in Königsberg, as it was becoming Kaliningrad, are presented through the prism of this metaphor. Without hoping to make specific recommendations of any use from such metaphorical grounds, this study aims to emphasize the depth, interconnectedness, and basic, metaphysical tension of the relationship between Europe and Russia, which cannot be terminated at will by either side, or by a third party. In a situation where the sides are doomed to dialog, Kant, appropriated by Russia as its “subject,” occupies the unique position of mediator of philosophical understanding and peaceful action.

Neglecting Others and Making It Up to Them: The Idea of a Corrective Duty

AbstractI aspire to answer two questions regarding the concept of a corrective duty. The first concerns what it means to wrong others, thus triggering a demand for corrections (the ground question). The second relates to the proper content of corrective duties. I first illustrate how three prominent accounts of corrective duties—the Aristotelian model of correlativity, the Kantian idea that wronging corresponds to the violation of others’ right to freedom, and the more recent continuity view—have failed to answer the two questions satisfactorily. I then introduce my proposal, which holds that we wrong others when we fail to treat their status as moral agents as a source of stringent constraints on our action. I call it the moral neglect account. Once we have identified a common aim of corrective duties (counterbalancing moral neglect), we can fill their content in the various contexts in which wronging has occurred. I conclude by observing that it is not the primary role of corrective justice to assign responsibilities for damage reparations; in fact, requests for compensation make more sense if framed in distributive rather than corrective terms.

The Moral Habitat

<i>The Moral Habitat</i>

Immanuel Kant's idea of people's power

Immanuel Kant's idea of people's power

Thermodynamic transformation determining the essence of time

The consistent application of thermodynamic knowledge makes it possible to analyze in detail and modify the definition of time formulated by Isaac Newton. It also makes it possible to integrate Immanuel Kant's ideas about the relationship of human sensuality with the modern category of time. As a result of these analyses, there is an updated definition and indication of the constant that determines the rate of passage of time. A distinction between the concepts of time and duration emerged, making it possible to conclude that only processes described by the category of duration can be reversible. Other processes considered in terms of time are irreversible. The main purpose of this article is to precisely define the original thermodynamic transformation, which is the basis for measuring the pace and feeling of the course of time.

Self-Consciousness, Transparency, and Reflection

The capacity of human knowers to turn their cognitive powers upon themselves has long fascinated philosophers. My book Transparency and Reflection grew out of an attempt to comprehend a fundamental thought from Kant about the significance of this capacity for self-consciousness: namely, that it transforms the general character of human knowing, giving rise to a distinctively rational form of cognition and supplying the basis for a distinctively philosophical understanding of our own minds and of the world with which they engage. In seeking to understand these Kantian ideas, however, I found myself struggling with difficulties that led me to re-think my approach, moving away from a Kantian formulation of these points and toward one inspired by ideas from Sartre. In the present essay, I describe the difficulties that led me from Kant to Sartre, and I also seek to explain how, in spite of this shift in perspective, my book bears out various fundamental Kantian thoughts about the significance of human self-consciousness.

Анджолини vs Кант: к философскому наследию Полоцкой иезуитской академии

The movement for the revival of the Scholastic tradition (Neo-Scholasticism) was a reaction to devastating criticism by the representatives of Enlightenment which led to the destruction of traditional metaphysics and of epistemological optimism, the two pillars of European religious philosophy. Reception of Kantian ideas in Neo-Scholasticism varied from total rejection to its use in renewing the philosophical foundation of religious philosophy. In this regard the legacy of the Polotsk Jesuit Academy was one of the first attempts to interpret Kant’s ideas and confront them in the framework of the Scholastic tradition. It is therefore not irrelevant to look at how Kant’s programmatic ideas were perceived at the Polotsk Jesuit Academy, one of the few centres of Jesuit philosophy that survived in the territory of the Russian Empire in the early nineteenth century. The object of this study is the attempt at a critical analysis of Kant made in the Philosophical Instructions for Students at the Polotsk Academy by the Academy’s professor, Giuseppe Angiolini. Angiolini constantly refers to Kant in his reasoning and sees him as his main ideological rival. The ideas articulated in the Philosophical Instructions influenced the philosophical positions of the Academy’s graduates who in turn made a tangible contribution to the development of the Belarusian intellectual tradition. The relationship between Kant’s ideas and the ideas Angiolini drew from the Scholastic tradition is analysed through the use of the concepts that are common to both trends, such as the transcendental, the empirical and the sensible, self-evident truths and common sense.

Kant’s pedagogical thought and current problems of education

Reflection on education has a central place in Kantian anthropology. The human being can only become human through education. In my analysis of Kant’s standpoint, I identify the characteristics of education that underlie Kantian anthropology: the exclusive predisposition of humans to education, the duty of a human to be educated, the communicative nature of education, education as a product and goal of humanity, the continuous development of education plans and education as a tool to improve humanity. In interpreting the latter idea, I reveal the specific optimism and pessimism of Kant’s pedagogical thought. Further, I analyse the key characteristics of education to transfer Kantian ideas to the present context. I also reformulate current problems in education in comparison to, and with the help of, Kantian pedagogical ideas. These issues are the correlation between Kant’s pedagogical anthropologism and the problem of artificial intelligence, the transformation of the teacher-student relationship, extended adolescence, personal growth of the educator, the consequences of education digitalisation, the advantages and disadvantages of using the Internet in education, the effect of an information society on education, and the role of the state in education. I conclude that commitment to Kantian principles in contemporary education is nominal rather than substantial and that embracing these principles is complicated by the pervasiveness of modern technology in human life. Overall, Kant’s pedagogical theory is the perfect reference point for an optimistic outlook on education.

Perpetual Peace: An Analysis of Kant’s Theory of Peace in Terms of The Islamic Worldview

This study critically discussed the concept of 'perpetual peace' according to Immanuel Kant. For Kant, peace is absolute, and war must be avoided. Kant's concept of peace departs from his philosophical ideas about humans and ethics. According to the researcher's hypothesis, Kant's concept of peace is problematic and not compatible with the concept of peace in Islam. This study aimed to describe Immanuel Kant's concept of perpetual peace and the concept of peace in Islam. In addition, it also analyzed how Kant's concept of perpetual peace is viewed from the Islamic worldview. This research was library research, and the methods used were descriptive, analytical, and comparative. This research concluded that Kant's concept of peace had several philosophical and practical problems. Philosophically, Kant's concept of peace revolves around the concept of man, ethics, and causality, which tend to deny the element of God in it. In practical terms, Kant's idea that war should not exist is a dream that is difficult to realize. His opinion about the peace triangle also leaves many problems. In contrast to that, in the view of Islam, war is allowed to fight injustice and aim for the creation of goodness or maslahah, justice, and global peace. War in Islam is also regulated based on ethical and humanitarian principles. This is based on the Islamic view of humans who simultaneously have a good and a wrong side. In addition, Islam focuses more on human nature and its perspective on reality and life to achieve peace. The Qur'an, with normative teachings such as equality between humans, justice, honesty, the nature of qanaah, can be used as a normative and practical basis for achieving perpetual peaceKeywords : Perpetual Peace; Immanuel Kant; Islamic Worldview

Charles Mills’ ‘Black Radical Kantianism’ as a Plot Twist for Kant Studies and Contemporary Kantian-Liberal Political Philosophy

AbstractThis article shows that themethodologyof Mills’ ‘Black Radical Kantianism’ (BRK) represents a major plot twist for Kant studies as well as contemporary political philosophy utilizing Kantian ideas. BRK is no mere upgrade of Kant’s or Kantian ideal theory for racial justice. Mills’ methodology requires us to positboththat the real Kant and establishment Kantianism have been racist, sexist and Eurocentric;andthat only by first admitting and reckoning with the compatibility of white supremacy and liberal egalitarianism can we hope to radicalize Kant or Kantianism.

Not just "bodies with vaginas": A Kantian defense of pelvic exam consent laws.

Medical students commonly learn how to administer pelvic exams by practicing on unconscious patients, often without first obtaining explicit consent from patients to do so. While 21 states currently have laws that require teaching hospitals to obtain consent from patients to participate in this educational experience, opposition from the medical community has stymied legislative progress. In this paper, I respond to the two most common reasons offered to opposethe legislation, which appeal to (1) the educational benefits of these examsor (2) protecting institutional autonomy. Kantian ideas about autonomy help to illuminate the problematic ways in which these arguments supplant the importance of women's choices over how their bodies are used while seeking medical treatment. Ultimately, neither argument offers sufficient reason to oppose laws that require explicit consent before administering training pelvic exams.

Расовая теория И. Канта в контексте колониального дискурса эпохи Просвещения

The paper deals with analysis of the works of I. Kant from the point how these works fit into the colonial-enlightenment discourse of the late modern period. During a long time, this issue was out of the research attention, because the colonial issue was not considered to be the central aspect of I. Kant's works. The purpose of the study is an attempt to answer the questions, firstly, what place did colonial knowledge occupy in the ontological and epistemological systems of I. Kant, secondly, what was the specificity of Kant's racial theory, and, thirdly, how in Kantian philosophy the relationship between the ideas about the world's wholeness and the fact of the existence of other races was constructed. This author uses the method of historical and cultural contextualization by E. Said, which allows us to correlate Kant's ideas directly with the worldview system that developed in European intellectual thought in the late 18th - early 19th centuries. A special feature of the Kantian racial theory is that, on the one hand, it served as a cognitive strategy for systematizing knowledge about the conquered peoples within the framework of the scientific picture of the world, which was conceived as unified and expedient, on the other hand, it legitimized the domination of Europeans over the colonial population in terms of natural science.