It was a long road from the son of a craftsman to a universally honoured sage. He had to wait a long time for his professorship and only wrote his most important books in old age. But Kant wanted to lead a self-determined life from an early age. The circumstances were favourable: his hometown of Königsberg and Prussia under the "Enlightenment King" Frederick II "the Great" offered him the necessary freedom.
Kant opted for a harmonious double life: At his desk he was the precise scholar, at the dinner table the sociable man of the world. Time and time again, visitors who only knew his books were surprised by his wit. Kant made a distinction between work and life; his philosophy was meant to be more than an expression of his personality.
Three tables present this multifaceted Kant: a work table: his origins and youth, a billiards table: his private life, and a desk: the scholarly philosopher.
"Let us be silent about ourselves..."
Kant, Critique of Pure Reason 1781 (original motto in Latin)