Understanding the translator's approach to Kant, both his grammar and terminology, can provide useful insights that increase your understanding of the text. As the title states, Kant intends to examine the properties of reason itself. He cleans up the language a bit (especially pronouns) and provides a list of terms that Kant uses in an unusual way.įinally I recommend reading the translator's introduction and notes. The Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant is a book that I have heard of for a pretty long time but never got around to reading. Reviewed by James Messina, University of Wisconsin-Madison 2017.11. O'Shea (ed.), Kant's Critique of Pure Reason: A Critical Guide, Cambridge University Press, 2017, 297pp., 99.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781107074811. For the Prolegomena I'd personally recommend Gary Hatfield's translation. Kant's Critique of Pure Reason: A Critical Guide James R. I'd recommend trying to get a hold of both and see which is the most agreeable for you. Reason falls into this perplexity through no fault. Kemp Smith was the standard for a while but now days people recommend either Guyer/wood or Pluhar/Kitcher. Human reason has the peculiar fate in one species of its cognitions that it is burdened with questions which it cannot dismiss, since they are given to it as problems by the nature of reason itself, but which it also cannot answer, since they transcend every capacity of human reason. This was written by Kant to make the CPR more accessible but is still challenging the general consensus was that it was useful and group members were grateful for the opportunity to familiarize themselves with Kant before jumping into CPR.įinally, the quality of the translation is going to matter. The Critique builds on the works of famous philosophers such as John Locke and David Hume, but Kant takes their ideas further. I had a Kantian professor once comment that every translation of Kant sucks because the original German sucks, to which a German national in the audience agreed.Ī few years back I ran a reading group for non-philosophers who wanted to read CPR and we started with his Prolegomena to any future metaphysics. In the Critique of Pure Reason, Immanuel Kant explores the foundation of human knowledge and its limits, as well as mans ability to engage in metaphysics. Nothing is going to prepare you for the hot-garbage that is that is Kant's writing.

The book critique of pure reason