Silent Years 189and that the only thing that would do for him was either the chair of moral
philosophy or the chair of metaphysics and logic.
On March 31, just fifteen days after submitting his request, Kant was
declared Professore Ordinano der Logic und Metaphysic. Kant had finally ob¬
tained the position he had wanted at least since 1755. Buck was less happy.
Neither Kant nor the Prussian authorities appear to have consulted him.
Buck complained about this, saying that "he had never even thought of
asking for the professorship in mathematics," and that "Kant himself
brought him unexpectedly the High Royal Patent without talking with him
or making friendly inquiries about this beforehand."^2 Obviously, there was
not much love lost between Kant and Buck, Knutzen's favorite student and
successor. Kant could not care less about Buck. He got what he wanted.
Well regarded in Berlin, he directly pursued his own interests, completely
disregarding what one might consider good manners or even moral sense.
Kant's disregard for Buck's fate may have been occasioned by his feeling
that he, and not Buck, had deserved the position in 1759, and that Buck
only got what was coming to him anyway. Kant never thought very highly
of Buck as a philosopher.
Kant's new salary was 160 Thalers and 60 Groschen, or about 100 Thalers
more than he received as a sublibrarian, and about 40 Thalers less than he
would have received in Jena.^3 His income (now about 220 Thalers) was still
modest, but it allowed him to live in relative comfort. In fact, his salary as
a professor alone was comfortable enough for Kant; he resigned his posi¬
tion as sublibrarian in May of 1772.
Before Kant could assume his position, he had to defend publicly a
so-called Inaugural Dissertation in Latin. He did so on August 21, 1770.
Three students (one from the faculty of theology, another from the fac¬
ulty of law, and a third from the liberal arts) and two colleagues were the
opponents. Kant had chosen Herz, now a student of medicine, to take up
the office of the "respondent," or the defender of Kant's thesis. This was
a great honor for Herz. Still, it was almost denied to him, for Kant had to
overcome "strong objections of the university senate" to having Herz
perform this role.^4 The dissertation was entitled "De mundi sensibihs atque
mtelhgihlis forma etpnnapiis" or "On the Form and Principles of the Sen¬
sible and Intelligible World." Though it was really not much more than a
hastily composed thesis, written to satisfy the academic requirements for
the professorship, it presented for the first time important aspects of the
critical philosophy. Kant himself considered this occasional piece as the true