The Sensibility of Kant’s Globus Sphere Critical Philosophy, Physical Geography and the Situated Subject

Abstract

This essay explores the metaphorical and conceptual significance of the globus sphere in Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason and the Physical Geography. Through its integration of sensibility and corporeal spatiality into the heart of Kantian philosophy, the essay argues that the spherical shape accommodates a situated notion of the subject. A conception that further nuances the “hard-edged” dominance of reason and rationality over sensibility, which often is associated with Kant’s thought. While recognizing the viable critiques of Kant’s Eurocentrism and racism in Physical Geography, the essay concludes by demonstrating how Kant’s concept of the sphere – emphasizing that neither Earth nor reason has a fixed center – implies that Kantian critique could likewise serve as a potential alternative to colonial and hierarchical modes of thought, thereby indicating a path toward the notion of a universal reason of a truly global character.