Criticism of the Kantian Philosophy

Schopenhauer appended this criticism to the first volume of his The World as Will and Representation. He wanted to show Kant's errors in order that Kant's merits would be appreciated and his achievements would be furthered. Arthur Schopenhauer Arthur Schopenhauer (February 22, 1788 – September 21, 1860) was a German philosopher born in Gdańsk (Danzig), Poland. ... The World as Will and Representation (original German title, Die Welt als Wille und Vorstellung; sometimes translated as The World as Will and Idea) is the central work of Arthur Schopenhauer and one of the most important philosophical works of the 19th century. ... Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (April 22, 1724 – February 12, 1804) was a Prussian philosopher, generally regarded as one of Europes most influential thinkers and the last major philosopher of the Enlightenment. ...

Kant's Merits

Kant's three main merits are as follows:

• The distinction of the phenomenon from the thing-in-itself.

The intellect mediates between things and knowledge.

Locke's primary qualities result from the mind's activity, just as his secondary qualities result from activity of the five senses.

A priori knowledge is separate from a posteriori knowledge.

The ideal and the real are diverse from each other.

Transcendental philosophy goes beyond dogmatic philosophy's "eternal truths," such as the principle of contradiction and the principle of sufficient reason. It shows that those "truths" are based on necessary forms of thought that exist in the brain.

• The explanation of how the moral significance of human conduct is different from the laws that are concerned with phenomena. The significance is directly related to the thing-in-itself, the innermost nature of the world.
• The complete overthrow of religious scholastic philosophy by the demonstration of the impossibility of proofs for speculative theology and also for rational psychology, or reasoned study of the soul.

Kant's Defects

• He asserted that metaphysics is knowledge a priori, or before experience. As a result, he concluded that it is impossible to know metaphysics from experience.
• Kant's writing was obscure.
• He was concerned with symmetrical tables and arrangements.
• Kant did not clearly distinguish knowledge of perception from abstract knowledge.

He didn't clearly explain the meaning of sensations, judgments, words, concepts, perceptions, understanding, and reason.

He divided reason into theoretical and practical, making practical reason the source of virtuous conduct.