Metaphysics as Science: Kant's Epistemological Framework

The Possibility of Metaphysics as Science

The problem of metaphysics concerns the possibility of rigorous scientific knowledge about God, freedom, or immortality. Metaphysics faces inherent deficiencies that place it at a disadvantage in relation to empirical science:

• Science progresses, while metaphysics often does not.
• Scientists generally agree on their theories and conclusions, whereas disagreement is common among metaphysicians.

The question arises: Can metaphysics be constructed like the sciences? If the answer is yes, then this deplorable state can be overcome. If not, perhaps it is better to abandon the construction of metaphysical systems.

To clarify whether metaphysics is possible as a science, a prior question must be addressed: How is science possible? If science is possible under certain conditions, can metaphysics comply with those conditions?

Kant's Synthetic A Priori Judgments

To understand the conditions for scientific knowledge, Kant distinguished different types of judgments:

Types of Judgments

• Analytic Judgments: A judgment is analytic when the predicate (P) is included in the subject (S). Therefore, one simply analyzes the subject to understand that it necessarily possesses the predicate. These judgments do not extend our knowledge.
  • Example: "All bachelors are unmarried men." (The concept of "unmarried" is contained within "bachelor.")
• Synthetic Judgments: These judgments do extend our knowledge, as the predicate (P) is not contained in the notion of the subject (S).
  • Example: "All bodies are heavy." (Heaviness is not inherently part of the concept of "body" but is learned through experience.)

A Priori and A Posteriori Judgments

• A Priori Judgments: Their truth is known independently of experience. They are universal and necessary.
  • Example: "Every event has a cause."
• A Posteriori Judgments: Their truth is known from experience. They are neither universal nor necessary.
  • Example: "The sky is blue."

The Significance of Synthetic A Priori Judgments

Synthetic a priori judgments are crucial because they are both extensive (they extend our knowledge of reality) and, by being a priori, are universal and necessary. Their truth is not derived from experience.

According to Kant, the fundamental principles of science are of this type. Hume, in Kant's opinion, erred by confusing particular causal laws with the general principle of causality. The principle of causality is a universal and necessary law; remove this law, and the world of experience becomes impossible to understand.

Kant's "Copernican Revolution"

Kant's "Copernican Revolution" explains that for scientific judgments to be possible, not all our knowledge can come solely from experience. Instead, knowledge is a synthesis:

• "Given" by the senses: This refers to the raw sensory data, the "matter" or "field" of knowledge.
• "Imposed" or "structured" by the subject: This refers to the a priori forms of intuition (space and time) and categories of understanding (e.g., causality). These structures, inherent to the mind, unify and synthesize the sensory data, making experience and objective knowledge possible.