Freedom and Anthropology in Kant’s Moral Philosophy

This book is the first comprehensive account of Kant’s theory of freedom and his moral anthropology. The point of departure is the apparent conflict between three claims to which Kant is committed: that human beings are transcendentally free, that moral anthropology studies the empirical influences on human beings, and that more anthropology is morally relevant. Frierson shows why this conflict is only apparent. He draws on Kant’s transcendental idealism and his theory of the will and describes how empirical influences can affect the empirical expression of one\'s will in a way that is morally significant but still consistent with Kant’s concept of freedom. As the first work on Kant to integrate his anthropology with his philosophy as a whole, this book will be an unusually important source of study for all Kant scholars and advanced students of Kant.

• Topic is Kant’s anthropology and that is very much the hot topic in Kant studies today • Cambridge pretty much dominates current Kant scene so a new monograph on a hot topic in this context is guaranteed to get a good deal of attention

Introduction: Kant’s anthropology and Schleiermacher’s dilemma; Part I. The Problem: 1. The asymmetry in Kant’s conception of freedom; 2. Anthropology as an empirical science; 3. The moral significance of Kant’s ‘pragmatic anthropology’; 4. Moral anthropology in contemporary neokantian ethics; Part II. The Solution: 5. Transcendental evil, radical evil, and moral anthropology; 6. Moral influence on others; Epilogue. Incorporating moral anthropology and defending Kantian moral philosophy.

‘Many recent works insist upon the importance of anthropology in Kant\'s thought: Frierson is the first to grasp fully and address directly the central problem posed by anthropology for Kant\'s metaphysically and morally robust account of moral freedom...This is a work that students on Kant\'s ethics will find instructive and stimulating, and that future studies of Kant\'s anthropology will have to contend with.’ – Susan Shell, Boston College

‘… this book will be of considerable value to students of Kant\'s philosophy of religion… Much has been written on these topics in recent years, but Frierson managed to bring a fresh pair of eyes to them and to raise a series of penetrating questions about the interpretation and coherence of Kant\'s account.’ – Journal of Religious Studies