Utrecht University

Faculty Member, Philosophy

Professor

About

Superviser of the research project (NWO-VIDI grant for innovative research) "The Quest for the System in the Transcendental Philosophy of Immanuel Kant", subsidised by the Netherlands Organisation of Scientific Research (NWO)

This research focuses on the 'system of reason' (System der Vernunft) in the philosophy of Immanuel Kant since 1781. In current research, however, there has been hardly any clarity established concerning the aims, purpose and principles of this system. The aim of this research program is to investigate this 'System of Reason', which Kant intended to publish but never did. It achieves its purpose primarily by an analysis of the literal heritage, published posthumously as the so-called Opus postumum. Here Kant presents important and yet not adequately examined insights into his intended system of reason. The clarification of this, in current research still enigmatic system of reason, is one of the most important desiderata for future philosophical research in the study on Kant. Not at least, because German idealism can be interpreted as the attempt to provide this system. And this attempt has influenced negatively our understanding of Kant’s own considerations concerning his system of reason and its intentions.

Two PhD-students are added to this project.

This research on Kant is part of a more comprehensive plan to describe the idea of the system of reson in German Idealism in general.

Other research concerns:
German Idealism in general
History of Philosophy
Early history of Kantianism in Holland (19th century)
German scholasticism (Deutsche Schulphilosophie) Neoplatonism
Plato and Aristoteles
Metaphysics
Epistemology
Psychology in the 18th Century
History of the History of Philosophy
Philosophy of Religion

Editor in chief of the series Studia Reinholdiana published at Walter de Gruyter (Berlin-New York).

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