A quick and dirty overview of Kant, as it has to be in so short a space. But the book holds together well and actually manages t A Tourist in Kant-Land
A quick and dirty overview of Kant, as it has to be in so short a space. But the book holds together well and actually manages to have a logical progression through Kant’s ideas — largely thanks to Kant himself, for he systematically expanded his thought into new and related realms and a commentator/tour-guide only has to follow him in this path, looking back and explaining to the student/tourist what Kant is going on about.
Scruton does a really good job of laying out the bare bones of the critiques but limits himself to that. He avoids most of the controversy and the developments that arose from Kant’s ideas. Barely a couple of paragraphs summarize Kant’s continuing influence through later thinkers. That is one area where a bit more meat would have been useful.
In any case, it was a good tour and even though Scruton takes us only through a few popular tourist spots, he leaves us with a sense of confidence that we may take the rest of the journey by ourselves… one day, with the requisite preparation. As always, when a VSI tour guide does that I rate them highly. (For a complete summation and a flash-tour, go to Ian's review.)
Buy the ticket, this guided tour is worth your money. You can always come back later without the guide. ...more
Bonus: A quick passage from the book (representative, both):
And here is the letter of acceptance, shorn of honorific implications, that a philosophically frank law school should send those it admits:
Dear successful applicant,
We are pleased to inform you that your application for admission has been accepted. It turns out that you happen to have the traits that society needs at the moment, so we propose to exploit your assets for society’s advantage by admitting you to the study of law.
You are to be congratulated, not in the sense that you deserve credit for having the qualities that led to your admission—you do not—but only in the sense that the winner of a lottery is to be congratulated. You are lucky to have come along with the right traits at the right moment. If you choose to accept our offer, you will ultimately be entitled to the benefits that attach to being used in this way. For this, you may properly celebrate.
You, or more likely your parents, may be tempted to celebrate in the further sense that you take this admission to reflect favorably, if not on your native endowments, then at least on the conscientious effort you have made to cultivate your abilities. But the notion that you deserve even the superior character necessary to your effort is equally problematic, for your character depends on fortunate circumstances of various kinds for which you can claim no credit. The notion of desert does not apply here.
We look forward nonetheless to seeing you in the fall.
Loading...
