This book provides a novel treatment of Immanuel Kant´s views on proper natural science and biology. The status of biology in Kant´s system of science is often taken to be problematic. By analyzing Kant´s philosophy of biology in relation to his conception of proper science, the present book determines Kant´s views on the scientific status of biology. Combining a broad ideengeschichtlich approach with a detailed historical reconstruction of philosophical and scientific texts, the book establishes important interconnections between Kant´s philosophy of science, his views on biology, and his reception of late 18th century biological theories. It discusses Kant´s views on science and biology as articulated in his published writings and in the Opus postumum. The book shows that although biology is a non-mathematical science and the relation between biology and other natural sciences is not specified, Kant did allow for the possibility of providing scientific explanations in biology and assigned biology a specific domain of investigation.
