Metaphysics as Addressed by Kant and Hume Essay -- Papers Kant Hume Ph

Metaphysics as Addressed by Kant and HumeIn the Prolegomena, Kant states that reading David Hume, awakened him from his narrow-minded slumber. It was Humes An doubtfulness Concerning Human Understanding that made Kant aware of issues and prejudices in his life that he had previously been unaware of. This further prompted Kant to respond to Hume with his own analysis on the opening of metaphysics. Kant did not feel that Hume disseminatet with these matters adequately and resolved to pick up where Hume had left off, specifically addressing the question of whether metaphysics as a science is possible. Hume basically asserted in his writings that metaphysics, as a science, is not possible. He specifically drew on the theory of causality, which is the attempt by people to rationalize situations. These rationalizations deal with the experience of cause and effect. People tend to attri besidese patterns to things according to their cause and effect. For example, gravity causes t he anything that goes up to come down- we have become so used to this precept that we have made a very definitive statement on the subject. Hume however, attacks this principle by claiming that we have not experienced every instance of this matter. It is not that it must come down, but that it happens to come down. He believed that any all or must statement is not rein military strengthd through reason but through repetition. Because Hume feels this way, he then concludes that metaphysics is not possible.Humes writing posed an interesting starting off point for Kants theories. As said before, Kant attributes Humes writing with waking him from his dogmatic slumber. He recognizes both Humes intelligence and the validity of his statements. However, he does n... ...th much like Hume stood by skepticism. He relies blindly on faith to explain a humongous part of what he is trying to discredit Hume for. It is almost as if he is not making a definitive statement on the existence o f metaphysics. Rather, he is caught in the middle, claiming that it may be true in one instance, but not in another. Kant directly deals with the problems presented in Humes analysis of metaphysics. Where Hume stops his line of mentation and becomes skeptical as to the existence of metaphysics as a science, Kant picks up. He proceeds to analyze both the validity of metaphysics as a science and a force in our lives. Turning to the methods of other credible men in the scientific field- such as Copernicus- Kant develops a whole new approach to looking at the world. However, like Hume, Kant encounters an obstacle and does not find a solution for it.