Document Type
Article
Abstract
This paper defines steps in Kant's understanding of perception. A detailed account of Kant's transcendental aesthetics explains why philosophers associate Kant's theory of knowledge with the death of metaphysics. Kant's philosophy, a reaction to Hume's observations on cause/effect relations, determines the very nature of contemporary metaphysics. A review of Kant's interpretation of knowledge in light of reason and perception, however, reveals that for Kant, knowledge acquisition occurs via an introverted vision relating to inner and outer environment. This justifies interpreting his work as metaphysics, and supports comparison of Kant's views to Rousseau's perspectives, which are associated with yogic concepts of knowing and knowledge acquisition, especially as regards metaphysical dimensions of "knowledge." Psychological or bioenergetic reflection on both philosophers' theories reveals different interpretations of metaphysics that facilitate an understanding of how these ideas expose processes of learning. Clarification of the concepts of knowing and understanding gives a different perspective on how learning may occur in an integrated fashion. The processes and elements involved in knowing and understanding (mind and body) contribute to integrity and to the perception of unity in learning.
Repository Citation
Johnston, Guillemette. "Kant's Theory of Reason: Is it Metaphysics After All? Kant, Rousseau, Yoga, and the Operations of Reason in Light of Understanding and Knowing." Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture vol. 14, no. 2, 2014, pp. 1–17. https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/reconstruction/vol14/iss2/7