Kant#
Summary#
Kant is presented as a moralist whose “categorical imperative” masks a personal desire for obedience and conformity, with his system of morals revealing more about his character than about universal truths. Nietzsche criticizes Kant’s discovery of “synthetic judgments a priori” as circular reasoning akin to explaining opium’s effects by a “sleep-inducing faculty.” While acknowledging Kant’s influence on German philosophy and his epistemological attempt to question the foundations of the subject, Nietzsche classifies Kant as a “philosophical worker” who formalized existing values rather than a true philosopher who creates new ones.