The Critique of Paul Guyer's Interpretation of the Deduction of Aesthetic Judgments in Kant's Aesthetics

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy of Art, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran

Abstract

Paul Guyer is one of the most prominent commentators of Kant's works, whose opinions have always been respected by Kant scholars. He offers a unique interpretation of Kant's doctrine of aesthetic deduction, which has prompted thought-provoking critiques. This interpretation is known as the "epistemic-non-normative interpretation," which relies on a statement by Kant in §32: "to say 'this rose is beautiful' is equivalent to saying that the claim [particular] satisfies everyone"; this interpretation argues that the inference of aesthetic judgment must be an argument sufficient for "attributing" specific feelings to others under specific conditions, ultimately claiming that Kant's own analysis necessitates addressing details, which could lead to the failure of his deduction. Accordingly, the present study has sought to answer these two questions: 1. What are Guyer's reasons for proposing the epistemic-non-normative interpretation of Kant's Deduction? 2. Does he succeed in explaining Kant's Deduction? Therefore, this study aims to explore the intricacies of this interpretation and the reasons behind its proposal, and then to examine its success or failure in accounting for Kantian inference. It seems that this interpretation, by overlooking the responsibilities Kant himself assigned to deduction, ultimately cannot adequately interpret Kant's deduction in the Critique of Judgment. The methodology of this research is descriptive-analytical based on library data. 

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References

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Journal of Philosophical Investigations
Volume 19, Issue 52 - Serial Number 52
Articles
52 Autumn 2025
November 2025
Pages 365-384

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