The Fiery Test of Critique: A Reading of Kant's Dialectic

— —

Ian Proops (Professor of Philosophy, Professor of Philosophy, University of Texas at Austin)

The Fiery Test of Critique

A Reading of Kant's Dialectic

Ian Proops (Professor of Philosophy, Professor of Philosophy, University of Texas at Austin)

$58.95

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Oxford University Press
14 November 2025

Western philosophy: c 1600 to c 1900; Philosophy: metaphysics & ontology

Kant conceived of 'critique' as a kind of winnowing exercise, one whose aim was to separate the wheat of good metaphysics from the chaff of bad. But he used a less familiar metaphor to make this point, namely, that of a 'fiery test of critique'. This is not a medieval ordeal or trial by fire, but rather a metallurgical assay, a procedure in which ore samples are tested for their precious-metal content. Critique therefore has a positive, investigatory side: it seeks not merely to eliminate bad, 'dogmatic' metaphysics but also to discover what valuable residue traditional speculative metaphysics might contain. In this comprehensive study of the Transcendental Dialectic of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason, Proops argues that Kant uncovered two nuggets of value: the indirect proof of Transcendental Idealism afforded by the resolution of the Antinomies, and a defence of theoretically grounded 'doctrinal beliefs' in a wise and great originator, on the one hand, and in an afterlife, on the other. This examination of critique engages with Kant's views on a number of central problems in philosophy and meta-philosophy: the explanation of the enduring human impulse towards metaphysics, the correct philosophical method, the limits of self-knowledge, the possibility of human freedom, the resolution of metaphysical paradox ('Antinomy'), the justification of faith, the nature of scepticism, and the role of 'as if ' reasoning in natural science.

By: Ian Proops (Professor of Philosophy Professor of Philosophy University of Texas at Austin)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 235mm, Width: 157mm, Spine: 30mm
Weight: 767g
ISBN: 9780198978107
ISBN 10: 0198978103
Pages: 512
Publication Date: 14 November 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Introduction Part I: Rational Psychology 1: Transcendental Illusion 2: Empirical and Rational Psychology 3: The Paralogisms--Preliminaries 4: The First Paralogism in B 5: The First Paralogism in A 6: The Second Paralogism 7: The Third Paralogism 8: The Fourth Paralogism Part II: Rational Cosmology 9: The Mathematical Antinomies Presented 10: The Mathematical Antinomies Resolved 11: The Third Antinomy Presented 12: The Third Antinomy Resolved 13: The Fourth Antinomy Part III: Rational Theology 14: The Ontological Argument 15: The Cosmological Argument 16: The Physico-Theological Argument 17: The Regulative Use of the Ideas 18: Closing Reflections

Ian Proops is Professor of Philosophy at The University of Texas at Austin. He works on Kant and on the history of analytic philosophy.

Reviews for The Fiery Test of Critique: A Reading of Kant's Dialectic

A masterpiece * Camilla Serck-Hansson, European Journal of Philosophy * Contemporary Anglophone Kant scholarship at its best * Christopher Benzenberg and Andrew Chignell, The Philosophical Review * A true landmark for future scholarship on Kant's Dialectic and, indeed, on Kant's systematic critical philosophy as a whole * Markus Kohl, Mind * This is an extremely detailed analysis of Immanuel Kant's arguments from The Critique of Pure Reason (1781; revised 1787). The book's complexity notwithstanding, much can be said in praise of the book's form and method. In addition to the basics-clear organization and indexing-the book includes frequent detailed references and comparisons between various commentators on many of Kant's arguments, from his time to the present, and clear explanations of why Proops (Univ. of Texas, Austin) agrees or disagrees with each, and why. * S. E. Forschler, CHOICE * Proops's book may be the most thorough and reliable single-volume guide, in any language, to this stretch of the critique * Aaron Wells, The Philosophical Quarterly * as far as I am aware, [this is] the most comprehensive explanation of the Dialectic currently available * Rosalind Chapman, Kantian Review * The Fiery Test of Critique implicitly sets itself an ambitious twofold task. * Stephen Howard, Journal of the History of Philosophy, Volume 61.3 *