In his Metaphysical Foundations of Natural Science (1786), Kant accounts for the possibility of an acting-at-a-distance gravitational force, demonstrates the infinite divisibility of matter, and derives analogues to Newtonian laws of motion. The work is his major statement in philosophy of science, and was especially influential in German-speaking countries in the nineteenth century. However, this complex text has not received the scholarly attention it deserves. The chapters of this Critical Guide clarify the accounts of matter, motion, the mathematization of nature, space, and natural laws exhibited in the Metaphysical Foundations; elucidate the relationship between its metaphysics of nature and Kant's critical philosophy; and describe the historical context for Kant's account of natural science. The volume will be an invaluable resource for understanding one of Kant's most difficult works, and will set the agenda for future scholarship on Kant's philosophy of science.
Edited by:
Michael Bennett McNulty
Imprint: Cambridge University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
ISBN: 9781108701709
ISBN 10: 1108701701
Series: Cambridge Critical Guides
Pages: 301
Publication Date: 25 April 2024
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Introduction Michael Bennett McNulty; 1. Kant's conception of the metaphysical foundations of natural science: subject matter, method, and aim Thomas Sturm; 2. Kant's normative conception of natural science Angela Breitenbach; 3. The applicability of mathematics as a metaphysical problem: Kant's principles for the construction of concepts Katherine Dunlop; 4. Phoronomy: space, construction, and mathematizing motion Marius Stan; 5. Space, pure intuition, and laws in the metaphysical foundations James Messina; 6. Finitism in the metaphysical foundations Lydia Patton; 7. The construction of the concept of space-filling: Kant's approach and intentions in the dynamics chapter of the metaphysical foundations Daniel Warren; 8. Beyond the metaphysical foundations of natural science: Kant's empirical physics and the general remark to the dynamics Michael Bennett McNulty; 9. How do we transform appearance into experience?: Kant's metaphysical foundations of phenomenology Silvia De Bianchi; 10. Absolute space as a necessary idea: Reading Kant's phenomenology through perspectival lenses Michela Massimi; 11. Proper Natural Science and its role in the critical system Michael Friedman; Note on abbreviations and translations; References.
Michael Bennett McNulty is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy, University of Minnesota. He has published widely on various aspects of Kant's philosophy of science and philosophy of nature.
