Causation; Knowledge, Theory of; Philosophy, German; Reason
In this _second edition_, I have endeavoured, as far as possible, to
remove the difficulties and obscurity which, without fault of mine
perhaps, have given rise to many misconceptions even among acute
thinkers. In the propositions themselves, and in the demonstrations by
which they are supported, as well as in the form and the entire plan of
the work, I have found nothing to alter; which must be attributed
partly to the long examination to which I had subjected the whole
before offering it to the public and partly to the nature of the case.
For pure speculative reason is an organic structure in which there is
nothing isolated or independent, but every Single part is essential to
all the rest; and hence, the slightest imperfection, whether defect or
positive error, could not fail to betray itself in use. I venture,
further, to hope, that this system will maintain the same unalterable
character for the future. I am led to entertain this confidence, not by
vanity, but by the evidence which the equality of the result affords,
when we proceed, first, from the simplest elements up to the complete
whole of pure reason and, and then, backwards from the whole to each
part. We find that the attempt to make the slightest alteration, in any
part, leads inevitably to contradictions, not merely in this system,
but in human reason itself. At the same time, there is still much room
for improvement in the _exposition_ of the doctrines contained in this
work. In the present edition, I have endeavoured to remove
misapprehensions of the æsthetical part, especially with regard to the
conception of time; to clear away the obscurity which has been found in
the deduction of the conceptions of the understanding; to supply the
supposed want of sufficient evidence in the demonstration of the
principles of the pure understanding; and, lastly, to obviate the
misunderstanding of the paralogisms which immediately precede the
Rational Psychology. Beyond this point—the end of the second main
division of the “Transcendental Dialectic”—I have not extended my
alterations,[8] partly from want of time, and partly because I am not
aware that any portion of the remainder has given rise to
misconceptions among intelligent and impartial critics, whom I do not
here mention with that praise which is their due, but who will find
that their suggestions have been attended to in the work itself.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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