Kant's Theory of Knowledge: An Analytical Introduction

by Georges Dicker

Overview

The Critique of Pure Reason is Kant's acknowledged masterpiece, in which he tackles the question of how we can possibly have knowledge that does not rest on experience (a priori knowledge). The first half of the Critique advances a constructive theory of human cognition and defends the possibility of human knowledge against the skeptical empiricism of Hume. These sections of the Critique are difficult for beginners and for advanced students alike. While there exist many scholarly works discussing the Critique on an advanced level, this book is explicitly designed to be read alongside the text by first-time readers of Kant. Dicker makes Kant's views and arguments as accessible as possible without oversimplifying them, and synthesizes the views of contemporary scholars. Kant's Theory of Knowledge will be useful to both undergraduate and graduate students struggling with this notoriously difficult yet deeply influential thinker.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780190288358
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	11/04/2004
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	977 KB

About the Author

Georges Dicker is Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Center for Philosophic Exchange at SUNY Brockport. He is the author of Dewey's Theory of Knowing (1976), Perceptual Knowledge: An Analytical and Historical Study (1980), Descartes: An Analytical and Historical Introduction (1993), Hume's Epistemology and Metaphysics: An Introduction (1998), and numerous journal articles.

Editorial Reviews

"Dicker's book is filled with insightful clarifications that confirm Kant's epistemological relevancy to the analytic tradition."—Jason Howard, Review of Metaphysics

"Dicker is deft in integrating technically sophisticated descriptions of Kant's arguments with clear, illuminating examples."—Choice

"Georges Dicker's book is a remarkably cogent, clear, and accessible treatment of the first half of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. It advances an attractive interpretation of this material that will be of interest to any scholar of Kant's metaphysics and epistemology. Partly because it incorporates a fair-minded exposition and evaluation of the most influential work in this area of the past forty years, it is to my mind now the best companion for a first course on the Critique."—Derk Pereboom, University of Vermont

"Given the extreme difficulty of both Kant's prose and thought, I tend to be sceptical of this project of making Kant safe for beginners, so I was happily surprised to see that Dicker largely succeeds in his aim: he knows how to present Kant to students at the 'right' level of simplification. The book's prose is highly lucid and readable throughout, and Dicker presents wonderfully clear presentations of Kant's arguments, highlighting their structure and motivating their premises."—Harold Langsam, Philosophical Books

"Kant's Theory of Knowledge is an excellent book.... Georges Dicker provides a lucid tour not merely of Kant's theory of knowledge, but also (and perhaps more importantly) of the 'metaphysics of experience' that Kant defends in the critical philosophy.... I think this book is the best companion piece to the (first half) of the Critique currently on the market."—Andrew Chignell, Philosophical Review

From the Publisher