Some Notes on Kant's Deduction of Categories

• Authors: Nowotniak J.
• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

The article confronts the reader with Kant's problem of deduction of categories in the 'Critique of Pure Reason'. The authoress pays special attention to the philosopher's suggestion that dealing with this problem requires near acquaintance with 'the darkness inherent in it'. And that means, the deduction proceeds by investigating, what we actually ask for, what we intend with the question and what kind of solution we shall not accept. One can put the question: what entitles us to use concepts in such a way that they apply 'a priori' to objects? Where do categories take their necessity from? What does it mean to use concepts a priori - and 'a priori' itself? Kant definitely dismisses metaphysical attempts to justify our knowledge by recurring to God or other principle serving as ground and source of all sense meant to solve every problem, which seems too difficult for human beings. Such attempts not only miss the point, but also inevitably deprive our knowledge of objective validity and necessity. The only way to defend the apriority of categories is to justify these functions of our intellect by themselves, i.e., to recognize that they have no source, origin or ground, except in our mind.

Keywords

EN

KANT (DEDUCTION OF CATEGORIES)

Discipline

• PHILOSOPHY: PHILOSOPHY

• Publisher: Warsaw University, Institute of Philosophy, Institute of Polish Literature and Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw
• Journal: Przegląd Filozoficzno-Literacki
• Year: 2007
• Issue: 1(16)
• Pages: 179-213
• Document type: ARTICLE

Contributors

author

Nowotniak J.

• J. Nowotniak, Szkola Glówna Handlowa w Warszawie, Katedra Filozofii, ul. Wisniowa 41, 02-520 Warszawa, Poland

Identifiers

CEJSH db identifier

07PLAAAA02555291