We have evidence that 23 distinct sets of student notes from Kant’s lectures on moral philosophy existed at one point in time. Of these 23, 6 are either only very small fragments or we possess merely indirect evidence that they ever existed. Another 4 manuscripts stem from distinct periods of Kant’s intellectual development and have been a major resource for scholars and students: Herder 5 (1763/4), an-Powalski (1782/3[?]), an-Mrongovius (1784/5), and Vigilantius 4 (1793/4). All four of these manuscripts have been published in the Academy Edition (Volume 27). The remaining 13 sets of notes all stem from the middle of the 1770s and are so similar that they are believed to be distinct copies of one original set of notes (see e.g. 27:1041). All these manuscripts once existed and have been examined by scholars, but 6 of them have been lost since World War II (meaning only 7 still exist). According to scholars who were able to examine the majority of them, such as Paul Menzer and Wilhelm Krauß, these 13 sets of notes contain many variations, and some are more complete and more reliable than others for a variety of reasons. When preparing volume 27 of the Academy Edition, its editor Gerhard Lehmann chose Collins 2 as the “Norm” (27:1040) or representative copy of the ‘1770s group’ (as I will refer to it). But Collins 2 is not the best set of student notes from the 1770s group. This title belongs to the Kaehler manuscript, which was once lost but rediscovered toward the end of the twentieth century (that is, after volume 27 was printed) and published for the first time outside the Academy Edition. In this presentation, I propose that the Kaehler manuscript be included in the Academy Edition of Kant’s Collected Works. I begin (1.) by briefly outlining the publication history of the lecture notes on moral philosophy (with a focus on the 1770s group) both within and outside the Academy Edition. I then (2.) summarize the current state of scholarship concerning the quality of the 13 sets of notes on moral philosophy from the 1770s, which speaks in favour of Kaehler being the most reliable set, before (3.) presenting the reasons why Kaehler should be included in the Academy Edition.
The lecture will be preceded by an internal KanDem meeting on translating Hufeland, from 10:00-13:30.