author
Norman Kemp Smith
1872–1958
A leading Scottish philosopher and teacher, he is best remembered for making Kant and Hume more accessible to English-speaking readers. His clear, influential scholarship helped shape twentieth-century philosophy on both sides of the Atlantic.
1 Audiobook
A Commentary to Kant's 'Critique of Pure Reason'
by Norman Kemp Smith
About the author
Born in Dundee in 1872, he studied at the University of St Andrews and went on to build a distinguished academic career. He taught at Princeton University, first in psychology and then in philosophy, before returning to Scotland to serve as Professor of Logic and Metaphysics at the University of Edinburgh from 1919 until 1945.
He is especially known for his work on Immanuel Kant and David Hume. His 1929 English translation of Critique of Pure Reason became a standard text for generations of students, and his studies of Descartes, Kant, and Hume earned him a reputation as one of the most important philosophical scholars in Britain.
Kemp Smith combined careful scholarship with a gift for explanation, helping difficult philosophical works feel more approachable without reducing their depth. He died in 1958, but his translations and commentaries remain widely read by anyone interested in the history of philosophy.