Historical Figures Codexery

Immanuel Kant

Central thinker of the Enlightenment, known for transcendental idealism and the categorical imperative.

On 22 April 1724, a child was born in Königsberg, East Prussia, to a Lutheran family of Prussian German heritage; that child was Immanuel Kant.[1] According to Kant, morality originates from reason, and the categorical imperative applies to every rational being.[2]

Quick Facts

Birth name
Emanuel Kant
Born
22 April 1724
Birthplace
Königsberg, Prussia
Died
12 February 1804
Education
Collegium Fridericianum; University of Königsberg (M.A./PhD, 1755; Dr. phil. hab., 1756; PhD, 1770)
Institutions
University of Königsberg
Region
Western philosophy
Era
Age of Enlightenment

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

At his baptism, Kant received the name Emanuel; after studying Hebrew, he altered the spelling to Immanuel.[3] Kant's schooling began at the Collegium Fridericianum, and he completed his studies there in the late summer of 1740.[4] When he was 16, in 1740, Kant entered the University of Königsberg; there, Martin Knutzen taught him the philosophies of Gottfried Leibniz and Christian Wolff.[4] Kant's academic progress was halted when his father suffered a stroke and passed away in 1746.[5]

After leaving Königsberg, Kant worked as a private tutor in nearby towns while still pursuing his own scholarly work.[5] Kant's life ended in Königsberg on 12 February 1804.[6]

What the cited sources add

His mother, born Regina Dorothea Reuter, was German and died when Kant was only 14.[7] The family pastor, Dr. Schulz, recognizing Kant's talents, had him enrolled in the Collegium Fridericianum.[7] Kant's first published work attempted to arbitrate the conflict between Descartes and Leibnitz's methods for measuring bodies in motion.[7] The Cosmopolis account states that Kant was particularly impressed by Hume's analysis of causality.[7]

Kant's mausoleum adjoins the northeast corner of Königsberg Cathedral in Kaliningrad, Russia.[8]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Immanuel Kant" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Cosmopolis", Koenigsberg-is-dead.de, 23 April 2001 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Immanuel Kant" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pasternack, "On the Alleged Augustinianism in Kant’s Religion", Kantian Review, March 2020, p. 103–124; Palmquist, "Immanuel Kant: A Christian Philosopher?", Faith and Philosophy, 1989, p. 65–75 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Immanuel Kant" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kuehn 2001, p. 26; Haupt, "Rede des Bohnenkönigs – Von Petersburg bis Panama – Die Genealogie der Familie Kant", freunde-kants.com, p. 7; Pasternack, "Kant's Philosophy of Religion", Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, 2020; Kuehn 2001, p. 26 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Immanuel Kant" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: The American International Encyclopedia (New York: J.J. Little & Ives, 1954), Vol. IX. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Immanuel Kant" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kuehn 2001, p. 26; Kuehn 2001, p. 26 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Immanuel Kant" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Karl Vorländer, Immanuel Kant: Der Mann und das Werk, Hamburg: Meiner, 1992, p. II 332. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. "Cosmopolis", Koenigsberg-is-dead.de, 23 April 2001. facts only, no text reused. koenigsberg-is-dead.de
  8. Wikipedia, "Immanuel Kant" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Beyer, "Resurrecting Königsberg: Russian City Looks to German Roots", Spiegel Online, 25 July 2014 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Immanuel Kant (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

More in Scientists & Inventors

Adam WeishauptDaniel DennettDouglas HofstadterRobert NozickRobert M. PirsigHilary PutnamWillard Van Orman QuineHenry David ThoreauA. J. AyerSimone de BeauvoirHenri BergsonGilles Deleuze

Elsewhere in Historical Figures

Thomas Gainsborough · Artists & ComposersMark Antony · Rulers & LeadersLeonardo da Vinci · Notable FiguresCyril of Alexandria · Notable FiguresAvicenna · Notable FiguresMorgan Freeman · Writers & Journalists

Spotted an error? Know more?

Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced

Comments

Loading…
Open in the interactive codex →