The Only Use of
Immanuel Kant
in
The Great Gatsby
- There was nothing to look at from under the tree except Gatsby's enormous house, so I stared at it, like Kant at his church steeple, for half an hour.
p. 88.4Kant = famous Enlightenment philosopher who criticized proofs of God, but believed God's existence should be assumed (1724-1804)
Definition:
German philosopher generally considered the last major philosopher of the Enlightenment; emphasized the categorical imperative; criticized proofs of God, but believed God's existence must be assumed by rational, moral individuals (1724-1804)
In his Critique of Pure Reason Kant distinguishes between knowledge from experience and universal knowledge from reason such as mathematics. He distinguishes between human perception and objective reality to the point of saying that time, space, and causation may not exist outside the human mind. Still, he disagrees with those who say no universal truth can be found through experience. While experience can lead to universal understandings, it cannot lead to understanding of metaphysics. Instead, metaphysics should be studied through a critique of human reason.
The book is said to have moved philosophy beyond the debate between the rationalists and empiricists.
The book is said to have moved philosophy beyond the debate between the rationalists and empiricists.