To comprehend, according to Kant, is to possess sufficient insight into situations so as to also achieve some purpose. This requires that reason be applied with the discernment that reflective judgment makes possible. Comprehension, practical as well as theoretical, can fill in Kant's world concept and his sublime evocation of a Weltanschauung with a more down-to-earth worldview.
Scholars have recently stressed Kant's impure ethics, his nonideal politics, and his pragmatism. Makkreel complements these efforts by using Kant's ethical, sociopolitical, religious, and anthropological writings to provide a more encompassing account of the role of human beings in the world. The result is a major contribution to our understanding of Kant and the history of European philosophy.