The Critique of Pure Reason addresses the nature and limits of human understanding, challenging previous metaphysical systems. Kant introduces the concept of "transcendental idealism," arguing that while we can know phenomena (things as they appear to us), we cannot know noumena (things as they are in themselves). Kant's work profoundly impacted Western thought by redefining the boundaries of metaphysics and epistemology, influencing subsequent philosophical movements such as German Idealism, existentialism, and critical theory, and shaping debates about the nature of knowledge, reality, and the limits of human cognition.
