Kant’s Transcendental Aesthetic and Analytic
Transcendental Aesthetic
Transcendental knowledge encompasses all that deals with our concepts a priori. For example, space-time. It is the study of the pure a priori conditions of sensibility. The structure of knowledge is divided into two parts: 1) A priori 2) A posteriori. Kant begins by assuming the existence of synthetic judgments a priori in physics and mathematics, then there are those trials. He will study whether such judgments are possible. From this research, he will see if the existence of such judgments in metaphysics is possible. The a priori comes through the senses. The post will be prior to the senses. Where is the a priori in mathematics? Kant said that there is an a priori way of our mind that it is mathematically possible to organize space and time. There must be a pre-school experience called space-time or temporary space power.
The Copernican Revolution: Throughout history, Western thought has developed theories of knowledge (realistic). The Copernican revolution is based on changing the perspective, where there is the reality that comes to us if not we organize reality. (It is transcendental). Traditionally Plato, Aristotle, St. Thomas, etc., believed man was the center and other things came to him. Copernicus said that we were not in the center, if we were part of the external. Kant said that the world is not coming to us unless we organize it according to our abilities, but not configured. Descartes said, but also denied the possibility, was more radical and only used math, that is, we must not be human if not numbers.
Transcendental Analytic
Kant considers the faculty of mind and shows which are the conditions that make possible a priori synthetic judgments in physics. Transcendental analytics is the science of understanding and knowledge of the reason for which we think objects or things a priori. To know an object is through the physical should be stated a priori synthetic judgments. According to Kant, in mind are these categories:
- Category of Quantity: Based on unity, plurality, and totality.
- Category of Quality: Based on reality, negation, and limitation.
- Category of Relationship: Based on substance and accident, cause-effect-reciprocity, and community.
- Category of Modality: Based on the possibility or impossibility, existence or absence, and necessity and contingency.
Category of Quantity
The ability to differentiate between events that can occur only once (each), several times (plurality), or always (completely). This capability should be in the mind before experience.
Category of Quality
The nature in which we are presented with the event. The qualities can occur in nature: real (meeting all specifications), type of restriction (only met a few), and type of negation (does not meet any property).
Category of Relationship
A priori ability to identify an object with features. If substance and accident, as the ability to relate events in advance to determine whether these substances are accidents. If cause and effect, the relationship between cause and effects of something. If community and reciprocity, community relations is a uniform effect and the reciprocal relationship where someone has an effect on that thing.
Category of Modality
The possibility that we may have a certain element.
- Possibility or Impossibility: An event is presented as possible or impossible to look at things that did not have before.
- Presence or Absence: It can be analyzed as it feasibly can exist or not.
- Necessity or Contingency: Able to analyze when something arises as necessary or contingent.
The categories are the conditions of possibility, and parallel to these are the trials:
- Category unit; Universal judgments
- Category plurality; Particular judgments
- Category all; Singular judgments
- Category negative judgments; Reality
- Category affirmative denial trials; Limitation category judgments undefined
- Category of substance/accident; Categorical judgments
- Category cause/effect; Scenarios trial
- Category disjunctive judgments; Community and reciprocity
- Possibility and impossibility; Category problematic judgments
- Category assertoric whether or not trials
- Category necessity/contingency; Judgments apodictic