Precis: Critique of Pure Reason

Kant's Critique discusses the difference between a priori and a posteriori knowledge, as well as analytic and synthetic judgment. He discusses that a priori is "cognition independent of all experience" (136), and a posteriori is that which is gained from experience. Though he does sound intelligent in the text, he does not do a good job of conveying his ideas. The Critique is a slow, painful read, and most of it is barely understandable. The basic idea, however, does relate back to our reading from Plato. Plato picks out the essential subjects on which we must be knowledgeable and explains that some people already have this knowledge, while Kant discusses the difference between the knowledge that we already have and that which me must obtain through experience.