Immanuel Kant

Robert Wicks

• Publisher: Reaktion Books
• Year: 2026
• eBook ISBN:
  9781836392965
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Philosopher Biographies

The great German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) had astonishing conversational skills, was intelligently attentive to his frail physical constitution and lived with a single-minded dedication to the moral education of humanity. This concise biography highlights Kant as someone who embodied extreme intellectual ambition and unshakeable self-discipline. Robert Wicks explores the long-term influence of Kant's Pietistic upbringing, the initial frustrations in his search for intellectual fame, his impressive friendships and his reactions to momentous historical events such as the French Revolution. He also considers critically the accusations that Kant was sexist, antisemitic and racist, and describes Kant's final years along with his philosophical legacy. This is an accessible, illuminating account of Kant's complex philosophical ideas in the context of his life and times.

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Half-title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Introduction
• 1 Königsberg and the World Scene in the 1700s
• 2 Pietism, Kant, Königsberg and Casanova
• 3 Kant at the University: The Living Body in a Mechanistic World
• 4 The Theist, Astronomer and Socialite
• 5 The Best Friend, the Spirit-Seer and the Dogmatic Slumbers
• 6 The ‘Silent Decade’: Space and Time as ‘Imaginary’
• 7 Kant’s ‘Table Society’ and His Battles against a New Era
• 8 The Writings of the 1780s: Kant’s Three Critiques
• 9 The Final Years
• Epilogue: Kant’s Legacy
• References
• Select Bibliography
• Acknowledgements
• Photo Acknowledgements