Beyond the Rationalism–Empiricism Divide: Kant’s Critical Resolution of the Problem of Human Knowledge
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54536/ajlp.v1i1.8100Keywords:
Critical Philosophy, Empiricism, Epistemology, Rationalism, Synthetic Priori Knowledge, Transcendental IdealismAbstract
One of the most significant arguments in the history of epistemology is the ongoing struggle between rationalism and empiricism. Empiricists contended that all knowledge comes from sensory experience, while rationalist philosophers held that reason is the basis of true knowledge. Both traditions faced severe philosophical challenges despite their important contributions. While empiricism struggled to explain necessity, universality, and the objective validity of knowledge, rationalism often strayed into speculative metaphysics, disconnected from empirical reality. Through a thorough examination of Immanuel Kant’s critical philosophy, this paper critically re-examines this persistent epistemological dispute. The research, which focuses mostly on the Critique of Pure Reason, contends that Kant’s transcendental idealism is not just a compromise between opposing traditions but rather a fundamental change in epistemology. Kant offers a framework that maintains the essential ideas of both rationalism and empiricism while overcoming their drawbacks by showing that experience is only conceivable through the combination of empirical intuitions and a priori cognitive processes. Kant’s theory of synthetic a priori knowledge, the categories of understanding, transcendental deduction, and the differentiation between noumena and phenomena are all given special consideration. The essay also assesses Kant’s framework’s ongoing applicability for philosophical debates on objectivity, necessity, and the boundaries of human cognition. It comes to the conclusion that Kant’s critical philosophy developed a new basis for epistemological investigation that continues to influence modern philosophical debate, in addition to resolving a significant crisis in early modern thought.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Samuel Maku, Christopher Asogwa, Ushingio, Peter Ushingio (Author)
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