Kanta redefinicja rozumu: krytyka, wolność, oświecenie

Abstract

Redefinition of a concept which is well−established in a culture is a risky enterprise. One needs to say something new and revealing and to connect it to the old understanding of the concept at the same time. It is easy therefore that the novelty remains unappreciated. This is the fate of Kant's concepts of reason and critique. They are part of the modern intellectual culture but they are usually understood in the old Cartesian senses and in this way they provide a basis for criticisms of Kant's philosophy and the “Enlightenment project". It is argued in the paper that Kant talked about reason and critique as constituents of a public practice in which finite beings question and correct established views and social institutions. This practice relies on freedom of speech which establishes a very close link between reason and critique. On Kant's view, reason and critique are inseparable in that they are a public practice of free debate of a plurality of finite beings. This account of reason and critique are parts of Kant's more comprehensive view in which enlightenment is seen as a project of liberation and modernization of society and state.