Immanuel Kant. What can I know? What should I do? What may I hope?

Manfred Weltecke

The lecture gives a short, accessible introduction to the life and work of Immanuel Kant. It concentrates on Kant's theoretical and moral philosophy as well as on his views on religion and explains how these three are related to each other in the system of the most imporant philosopher of the German Enlightenment. "Since I have robbed the will of every inducement that might arise for it as a consequence of obeying any particular law nothing is left but the conformity of action to universal law as such, and this alone must serve the will as its principle. That is to say, I ought never to act except in such a way that I can also will that my maxim should become a universal law." (IV, 402)