Causalidade kantiana e leis científicas contingentes

Abstract

Causality refers to the connection between two events in which one causes the other. This connection must be necessary and permanent, in other words, the first event causes the second always and irrevocably. Doubts about the validity of the causal principle are recurrent in philosophy, and David Hume's enquiries seem to have the best critique on the subject. Nonetheless, causality is seen as essential and inevitable in the formulation of countless scientific laws. However, since the critiques of 20th century epistemology, these laws have been considered contingent or revisable. Our question is: how to make the contingency of scientific laws compatible with the need for Kantian causality? To this purpose, we will do the following: 1) we will analyse the link between time and the cause and effect relationship to access Kant's understanding of causality; 2) we will show how the difference and dependency relationship between Kantian causality and causal physical laws occur; 3) we will finally meet with the Kantian sense of the necessity and revisability of physical laws.