Rights of Reason

Man, Kant claimed, is a 'being of needs' that are not met by nature as man's due but only through his own strenuous and imperfect efforts. This book is the first to examine Kant's understanding of the relation between man and nature as it bears on his theory of right. It sheds new and important light on Kant's politics and on his place in the history of liberal thought. Its sustained consideration of the theory of right also contributes to a newly integrated view of Kant's philosophy as a whole. The Rights of Reason proceeds from a discussion of Kant's pre-critical understanding to a consideration of the critiques of pure and practical reason. The final chapter, a selective commentary on Kant's Doctrine of Right, explores in detail the implications of his theory of right for his politics and theory of knowledge. Students of philosophy, political and social theorists, and those interested in the history of liberal thought in particular and intellectual history in general will welcome this thoughtful and significant examination of Kant's philosophy.