What is Enlightenment?
Author: KantKant
Kant
Wrote [[Kant, What is Enlightenment?]]
Man's primary problem isn't sin; it's that he doesn't have the freedom to reason & be enlightened (??)
Background
came from Prussia, wrote under Frederick the Great
Kant - a rationalist who wants to confine reason to the bounds of experience
reason is bound by the condition of possible experience; cannot reason about unexperienced things
so, we can't reason a/b God crating the world because we didn't experience it
...
Class Discussion
What are his ends?
- Are we after enlightenment or freedom?
- We want freedom so that we can pursue enlightenment
- enlightenment: man's release from his self-incurred tutelage; thinking for yourself
- it's ok to learn from others, but I have to think through what they're giving me; not just accepting it
- what is the end of enlightenment? continual progress
- there is no "the good" that enlightenment aims at; but man's use of individual reason will always lead in a "good direction"
- ie. it doesn't matter what you believe; as long as you came to that conclusion by yourself
- i.e. it doesn't matter whether you're moving toward truth or falsehood, as long as you're moving
- is there no ultimate TruthTruth
Truth
"What is truth?" - Pontius Pilate
"As for certain truth, no man has known it, nor will he know it." - Xenophanes
How to choose between competing theories (hypotheses) that both explain at least some of the observations?
Hume on Truth
Times He Mentioned Truth
(Taken from [[Hume, Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding|Enquiry]])
truth & falsehood exist (1.14)
some truths are knowable (1.14)
his goal in enquiry seems to be truth (1.17)
Euclid found truth (4.1)
a false...?- or maybe ultimate truth is unattainable; we can only get closer to it
- guardians of action are beneficial; but not of thought
What are the impediments to his ends?
What are the means to overcome those impediments?
What does Kant mean by ReasonReason
Reason
reason is the "natural light" [[Descartes]]
what is the difference b/t reason & thinking?
what is thinking?
processing information?
in this case, can an animal think?
what is reason?
a type of thinking?
can you only accept what has been proven by reason?
reason is like a telescope: it lets us see things clearer; but it must have ...?
- can this reason actually arrive at a conclusion?
Critique of the Enlightenment
- it didn't work; using our reason led us to WWI & WWII
Summary
Kant described man's tutelage as being his dependance on another person for the use of his reason. Enlightenment is when a man is released from this bondage and has the ability and competance to think for himself. There are certain times and situations where a man ought to follow another: a priest leading his flock in worship, for instance, has agreed to lead them in a certain way. But when he is acting as a scholar and not as a priest, he has every right to doubt and consider his religion. We should not and cannot impose upon ourselves or others the harsh burden of having everything decided for him. Every man has the right to think for himself. He must still obey the authority (such as the prince) over him, but ideally he can always think for himself and voice his opinion to others.