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Kant on Remorse, Conversion, and the Descent into the Hell of Self-Cognition

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 October 2024

Benjamin Vilhauer Open the ORCID record for Benjamin Vilhauer [Opens in a new window]
Benjamin Vilhauer*
Affiliation:
City College and Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
*
Email: bvilhauer@ccny.cuny.edu
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Abstract

Kant’s conception of remorse has received little discussion in the literature. I argue that he thinks we ought to experience remorse for both retributivist and forward-looking reasons. This account casts helpful light on his ideas of conversion and the descent into the hell of self-cognition. But while he prescribes a heartbreakingly painful experience of remorse, he acknowledges that excess remorse can threaten rational agency through distraction and suicide, and this raises questions about whether actual human beings ought to cultivate their consciences in such a way as to experience remorse in the way he conceives it.

Keywords

Kantremorseconscienceretributionpunishmentconversionself-cognitionsuicideguilthell

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Article
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Kantian Review , Volume 29 , Issue 3 , September 2024 , pp. 447 - 466
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Kantian Review

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