Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This paper provides an account of the purpose and methodology of Conjectural Beginning of Human History (1786). I show that Kant subordinates the theoretical goal of plausibly reconstructing the origin of humankind to the practical goal of helping the reader understand herself as a moral agent that must contribute to the achievement of humankind’s moral destination. First, I show that Conjectural Beginning is an innovative instance of conjectural history. Second, I argue that its methodology involves experience, imagination, and reason, whose conjoined use explains why Kantian conjectural history fares better than others. Third, I argue that the essay contributes, through a moral exhibition of the imagination, to the reader’s moral self-knowledge and cures some misconceptions that obstruct her commitment to moral progress.
Source: Kantian Review
Author: Carlos Schoof
Institution: Northwestern University
Language: English
Subfield: Philosophy
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,550
OpenAlex ID: W7160622410