Abstract
Kant’s enigmatic term ‘Gesinnung’ baffles many readers of Religion within the Bounds of Bare Reason. This study clarifies the notion in Kant’s theories of both general moral decision-making and specifically religious conversion. It is argued that Kantian Gesinnung is volitional, referring to a person’s principle-based choice to live a certain way. More specifically, interpreted as principled ‘conviction’, Kantian Gesinnung is a religiously-manifested, moral form of Überzeugung (‘convincing’). This is confirmed by a detailed analysis of the 169 occurrences of ‘Gesinnung’ and cognate words in Religion. It contrasts with what is suggested by translating ‘Gesinnung’ as ‘disposition’, which reinforces a tendency to interpret the notion more metaphysically, and also with Pluhar’s translation as ‘attitude’, which has too strongly psychological connotations.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 235-264 |
| Number of pages | 30 |
| Journal | Kantian Review |
| Volume | 20 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 30 Jun 2015 |
Scopus Subject Areas
- Philosophy
User-Defined Keywords
- Immanuel Kant
- religious conviction
- disposition
- attitude
- belief