Maks Sipowicz

Scholars have long recognised that Mary Astell builds her feminist critique of society on a foundation of Cartesian views about human nature and the passions. At the same time, the full extent of the influence of Descartes’ view of embodiment on the solution Astell proposes in her Serious Proposal to the Ladies is only beginning to come to light. In this paper, I contribute to this ongoing project by arguing that Astell builds on Descartes’ ideas by addressing a blind spot in his view, namely, that that the embodied self is socially situated, and that therefore, our social context plays a crucial formative role in the development of our passions. In doing so, I show Astell extends Cartesian philosophy beyond an egalitarian feminist critique of society, but also to a positive political theory offering a solution to the problems she identifies. Thusly, Astell shows the political potential of Cartesian philosophy as a framework for social critique and to seek solutions to the problems such a critique can bring out.

In Kant scholarship, there has long been a debate about the connection between his political and ethical thought. In his works concerned with political theory, such as the Metaphysics of Morals, Perpetual Peace, or An Answer to the Question: What is Enlightenment?, he concerns himself with coercively enforceable principles by which a society can be organised. In his works on ethics, such as The Groundwork to a Metaphysics of Morals, or The Critique of Practical Reason, he is concerned with principles of morality, which require free and unconstrained action. Prima facie, the realms of politics and ethics in Kant’s thought thus appear to be incompatible. This thesis will close the gap between Kant’s ethics and politics through an examination of his anthropological works. The thesis will argue that Kant’s philosophical understanding of human nature, i.e. his “philosophical” anthropology, necessitates a connection between his ethics and politics. The project begins with a reading of Kant’s anthropological texts to show that his concern with human nature was directly related to politics and to ethics. This will allow the thesis to then discuss the way in which human nature necessitates politics as a condition of possibility for ethical deliberation to occur. Finally, having shown the necessity of politics for ethics, and thus their necessary connection, the thesis will present an overview of Kant’s political philosophy in light of this connection to show precisely the way in which politics supports rational ethical deliberation. These considerations will allow for the debate about the connection between Kant’s politics and ethics to be settled, and provide us with an understanding of the depth of Kant’s concern with human nature.