Die a priori en die a priori sintese in die Wysbegeerte

Abstract

Die a priori en a priori sintese speel ? fundamentele rol in die Wysbegeerte. Volgens Kant kan die prinsipes van metafisiese denke nooit afgelei word van ervaring nie, want hierdie prinsipes transendeer ervaring (“lying beyond experience”). Aangesien hierdie prinsipes dus nie van fisika of empiriese psigologie afgelei kan word nie, is hierdie prinsipes a priori. Volgens Kant: “It is therefore cognition a priori, or from pure understanding and pure reason” (Kant, 2012:15). Kant gaan egter verder en dui aan dat metafisika essensieel te doen het met sintetiese proposisies a priori (Kant, 2012:22).

Die vraag is of a prioriese en a prioriese sintetiese proposies in die werklikheid bestaan. Sekere filosowe het, byvoorbeeld, die bestaan van a prioriese sintetiese proposisies ontken. Ander nie. Die artikel sal aandag gee aan hierdie problematiek en probeer rekenskap gee oor watter rol a prioriese en a prioriese sintetiese oordele speel in die wysbegeerte sowel as in die Reformatoriese wysbegeerte. Daar sal ook aandag gegee word aan die onderskeid tussen ekstensie en intensie en die idee van ? relatiewe a priori.

The a priori and a priori synthesis plays a fundamental role in philosophy. According to Kant, the principles of metaphysical thought cannot be derived from experience, because those principles transend experience (“lying beyond experience”). Seeing that these principles are not derived from physics or empirical psychology, these principles seem to be a priori. According to Kant: “It is therefore cognition a priori, or from pure understanding and pure reason” (Kant, 2012:15). Kant went further and indicated that metaphysics was essentially about synthetic a priori propositions (Kant, 2012:22).

The question is whether a priori and a priori synthetic propositions exist in reality. Some philosophers have, for example, denied the existence of a priori synthetic propositions. Others did not. This article will give attention to these problems and will attempt to account for what role a priori and a priori synthetic judgements are playing in philosophy as well as in reformational philosophy. The distinction between intension and extention as well as the idea of the relative a priori will also be scrutinised.