Kant's Humorous Writings - by Robert R Clewis (Paperback)

About the Book

"Commonly regarded as one of the most serious philosophers of all time (this is a man who took his daily walk at precisely the same time each day), Kant's Humorous Writings explores a dimension of Kant's work that has hitherto been almost entirely ignored but which casts his philosophy into a new light. With entirely new translations of Kant's bon mots, quips, and anecdotes, supplemented by historical commentary and numerous illustrations, this guide outlines just why these pieces were important to both the man and his work"--

Book Synopsis

While Kant is commonly regarded as one of the most austere philosophers of all time, this book provides quite a different perspective of the founder of transcendental philosophy. Kant is often thought of as being boring, methodical, and humorless. Yet the thirty jokes and anecdotes collected and illustrated here for the first time reveal a man and a thinker who was deeply interested in how humor and laughter shape how we think, feel, and communicate with fellow human beings.

In addition to a foreword on Kant's theory of humor by Noël Carroll as well as Clewis's informative chapters, Kant's Humorous Writings contains new translations of Kant's jokes, quips, and anecdotes. Each of the thirty excerpts is illustrated and supplemented by historical commentaries which explain their significance.

Review Quotes

For many readers, 'Kant' and 'humor' are two words that do not belong together in the same sentence. But in his detailed and engaging study, Robert Clewis gives the lie to this popular prejudice. The sage of Königsberg was both a fairly serious theorist of humor as well as a teacher who often sought to enliven his lectures with a good joke or two.
Robert B. Louden, Distinguished Professor and Professor of Philosophy, University of Southern Maine, USA

About the Author

Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher and is widely recognised one of the most important thinkers in the history of philosophy.

Robert Clewis is author of The Kantian Sublime and the Revelation of Freedom (2009), a translator in Kant's Lectures on Anthropology (2012), and editor of Reading Kant's Lectures (2015). He is also the editor of The Sublime Reader (Bloomsbury, 2018). He teaches philosophy and is Director of the Honors Program at Gwynedd Mercy University, USA and is an Alexander von Humboldt Fellow.

Noel Carroll is distinguished Professor of Philosophy, CUNY graduate Center, USA. He is author of more than a hundred articles and books on philosophies of film, art and humour.