Kant on the Analyticity of Logic
Issue: Issue 15 • Author/s: Costanza Larese
Topics: Epistemology, Philosophical logic, Philosophy of language, Theoretical philosophy
This paper calls into question the traditional interpretation that logic is, according to Kant, analytic. On the basis of a reconstruction of the salient features of both Kant’s theory of analyticity and conception of pure general logic, it is shown that Kant does not apply the analytic-synthetic distinction to logical judgments at all. Moreover, applying Kant’s definitions beyond his reasons for leaving the matter unsolved leads to the result that many logical judgments are neither analytic nor synthetic.