Philosophy. Study the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality and existence.

“Two things awe me most, the starry sky above and the moral law within.”

– Immanuel Kant

Immanuel Kant is a towering figure in philosophical history, who has had a profound influence on developments in metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, political theory and aesthetics. Kant synthesised early modern rationalism and empiricism. During this ten-week course, we will review his three major works and explore their main arguments: Critique of Pure Reason (1781) (science and the categories of the human mind); Critique of Practical Reason (1788) (the basis of morality and law); and Critique of the Power of Judgment (1790) (the human relation to nature and the basis of aesthetics).

Outcomes

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

• comprehend the overall idea of the development of Kant’s life, works, and the history of the times
• comprehend Kant’s ideas on the human mind; the basis of empirical knowledge; the foundations of morality; and the fundamental issues concerning nature and art
• discuss Kant’s impact on the philosophical world that came after his time
• relate Kant’s ideas to contemporary debates in ethics, politics, and art theory
• apply Kant’s theory to the assessment of some current debates on the nature of consciousness and the human mind.

Content

Life and works

Kant enjo