Kant and the Laws of Nature

This volume of new essays explores Kant's views on the laws of nature.

Michela Massimi (Edited by), Angela Breitenbach (Edited by)

9781107120983, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 16 March 2017

286 pages
23.5 x 16 x 2.1 cm, 0.58 kg

'Kant and the Laws of Nature, edited and with an introduction by Michela Massimi and Angela Breitenbach, is a collection of thirteen uniformly excellent essays on Kant's philosophical views on the nature and (metaphysical or epistemic) status of laws of nature, produced under the aegis of a three-year international research network running from 2012–15. But as contemporary Kantian philosophers and not merely as Kant-scholars, why should we care about laws of nature? In my opinion, there are at least four good reasons … Kant's Neo-Aristotelian Natural Power Grid is not only a new, exciting, and philosophically important Kantian conception of natural laws, but … is well-supported as a post-classical, post-orthodox interpretation of Kant's theory of natural laws by the thirteen excellent essays in Kant and the Laws of Nature.' Robert Hanna, Critique

Laws of nature play a central role in Kant's theoretical philosophy and are crucial to understanding his philosophy of science in particular. In this volume of new essays, the first systematic investigation of its kind, a distinguished team of scholars explores Kant's views on the laws of nature in the physical and life sciences. Their essays focus particularly on the laws of physics and biology, and consider topics including the separation in Kant's treatment of the physical and life sciences, the relation between universal and empirical laws of nature, and the role of reason and the understanding in imposing order and lawful unity upon nature. The volume will be of great interest to advanced students and scholars of Kant's philosophy of science, and to historians and philosophers of science more generally.

Introduction
Part I. The Lawfulness of Nature: 1. Kant on the unity and diversity of laws Eric Watkins
2. On universality, necessity, and law in general Karl Ameriks
3. Imperfect knowledge of nature: Kant, Hume and laws of nature Paul Guyer
Part II. The Systematicity of Nature: 4. Why must we presuppose the systematicity of nature? Hannah Ginsborg
5. Empirical scientific investigation and the ideas of reason Rachel Zuckert
6. Kant's transcendental principle of purposiveness and the 'maxim of the lawfulness of empirical laws' Thomas Teufel
Part III. Nomic Necessity and the Metaphysics of Nature: 7. Kant's necessitation account of laws and the nature of natures James Messina
8. Grounds, modality, and nomic necessity in the critical Kant Michela Massimi
9. Kant on mathematical force laws Daniel Warren
Part IV. Laws in Physics: 10. Kant's conception of causal necessity and its legacy Michael Friedman
11. Metaphysical foundations of neoclassical mechanics Marius Stan
Part V. Laws in Biology: 12. Laws in biology and unity of nature Angela Breitenbach
13. The building forces of nature and Kant's teleology of the living Catherine Wilson.

Subject Areas: History of ideas [JFCX], Western philosophy: Enlightenment [HPCD1], Philosophy [HP]