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A Brief Analysis of Immanuel Kants What is

Enlightenment?
In December 1783 Johann Friedrich Zllner published an article in Berlinische
Monatsschrift that stated his opposition to civil marriage, an idea proposed in a previous
issue of the journal. Zllner wrote that the foundations of morality had been shaken in
the name of enlightenment and concluded his piece with the question what is
enlightenment? Zllner asserted that this question must first be answered before one
begins to enlighten[1]. Immanuel Kants reply to Zllners question is often considered
the most famous and most important. In his essay, Kant succinctly outlined his opinion
on what enlightenment is, the obstacles to enlightenment and how individuals achieve
enlightenment.
Kant defined enlightenment as mans release from his self-incurred tutelage and the
courage to use your own reason[2]. Kant believed that laziness and cowardice were
the prime reasons why many men remained un-enlightened[3]. Kant asserted that people
refused to throw off the yoke of self-imposed tutelage because it was easier to pay
people to think for them and run their lives[4]. As Kant put it a person could pay to buy a
book to serve as understanding, a pastor to serve as a conscience and a physician to
determine a diet. There was no real need for an individual to exert their own will or their
own reason since these benevolent guardians would take over an individuals life for
them[5]. The act of enlightenment, therefore, was the act of rejecting this easy form of
life and asserting the primacy of your individual reason to reject the conventions of the
social guardians who Kant asserted herded society like docile, dumb livestock[6].
It is necessary to understand Kants definition of enlightenment in order to gain some
understanding of what Kant thought was an enlightened age and what was an age of
enlightenment. Kant argued that obstacles to individual enlightenment went beyond selfimposed obstacles. Freedom was the essential ingredient for enlightenment. Society,
however, imposed restrictions on freedom through laws and religion that constrained free
thought through law, convention or threat. Knowledge was also a requirement but access
to it was often very restricted and guarded in late eighteenth century Europe but attempts
were being made to bring knowledge to the masses. An age of enlightenment was a time
when obstacles to enlightenment were being removed or eroded, Kant believed that late
eighteenth century Europe was in such an age. As a society allowed more freedom, it
became more enlightened. An enlightened age, therefore, was an age when obstacles had
been removed and individuals and society were enlightened and free to pursue self
determination and self rationalization[7].
Kant did not try to assert that the only path to freedom lay on the path of revolution.
Revolutions, according to Kant, merely replaced old prejudices with new

-2prejudices[8]. Kant acknowledged that for a society to function properly, for a

government to help its people, it was often necessary for an individual to narrowly
restrict their reason in the pursuit of their job or duties. Kant defined this as private
reason and deemed it a necessity. Kant used an example of how disastrous it would be
for an office to question the appropriateness of an order rather than obeying it[9]. The
private use of reason was offset by an individuals public use of reason. In this form of
reason the individual takes upon the mantle of a scholar who has complete freedom,
indeed even the calling, to impart to the public all of his carefully considered and wellintentioned thoughts[10]. Private reason would compel an individual to pay a tax,
public reason would compel the individual to speak out against the necessity of the tax.
These two forms of reason allow a society as a whole to move towards enlightenment on
the thoughts of enlightened individuals who are active members of society serving as
agents of change but not necessarily revolution. As a society becomes more enlightened,
individuals are freer to act upon the enlightened opinions reached through their public
role as a scholar. This is a gradual process and Kants defense of the necessity of private
reason implies that a disobedient society itself is an obstacle to enlightenment[11].
The strength of Kants arguments lay in the context of when and where he wrote them.
Kant lived in a monarchical society that allowed for little individual freedom or
representation. Kants evolutionary nature of enlightenment worked well in a society that
is essentially not free. History proved that societies that gradually allowed more and
more freedom were able to maintain stability and encourage at least a small group of
scholars to try to lead societys trip to enlightenment. A steadily evolution towards
enlightenment will work in a society that is more restrictive or less representative of the
people because the slow rate of changes will still be perceived as changes and many will
be patient with a slow but steadily progression of change. In a more representative form
of government, however, revolutions are built into the government through elections. If
the elected leaders do not implement the ideas of those who elected them, the people
become dissatisfied and disobedient. So obstacles to enlightenment can be increased.
However, such systems by nature are built to accept and expect a fairly rapid pace of
change that would not be possible in a monarchy. New ideas can be implemented nearly
every election so in this regard revolution, which in this regard are elections. If quick
change is not implemented then the people grow frustrated and disobedient. The
dynamic is more complex than in a monarchy.
Freedom of thought is all that is required for individual enlightenment. Even the most
repressive regimes find it impossible to block an individual from thinking. So to some
degree Kant doesnt allow for enlightenment to happen in the absence of freedom. The
freedom to think and act upon those thoughts is the definition of Kants public reason.
But Kants definition of private reason seems incomplete. While it is necessary for an
individual to restrict their opinions based on duty or situation, that act does not restrict
individual enlightenment. The full scope of what Kant described as a public scholar is
the freedom to think and give voice to those thoughts, a private reason may also exist that

-3allows an individual to think but not be able to give voice to such thoughts. This is
different from sublimating their opinions to perform a duty. This is done perhaps more
out of fear than a sense of duty. A soldier may not be free to question an order but in a
more repressive society an enlightened individual may not be free to give voice to their
opinions without penalty of death. In such a case is an individual a coward or lazy?
Certainly it takes a high degree of courage to speak out but to call those not willing to die
for their opinions but how are self realized enough to have those opinions cowards is not
just nor fair. In a way Kant both argues against revolution but calls those unwilling to
rebel in restrictive cases cowards. So he undercuts his own argument if its taken out of
the context in which he wrote it where thought was tolerated as was the scholarly debate
of enlightened ideas.
Immanuel Kants essay What is Enlightenment? is justly considered an important work
regarding the enlightenment and reason. Kant concisely argues his opinion and presented
examples to illustrate his points. The arguments made are strong and logical in the
context of the monarchal society Kant lived in that while restrictive, allowed for some
freedom of thought and expression. Kants arguments lose some strength when applied
to different societies and governments.

Sources
Kant, Immanuel. What is Enlightenment? September 30, 1784.
Naragon, Steve. Johann Friedrich Zllner. Manchester College. 23 June 2011.
<http://www.manchester.edu/kant/bio/FullBio/ZollnerJF.html>.

Notes
[1] Steve Naragon, Johann Friedrich Zllner.
[2] Immanuel Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[3] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[4] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[5] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[6] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[7] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[8] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[9] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[10] Kant, What is Enlightenment?
[11] Kant, What is Enlightenment?

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