Generation

There is a collection of words Kant uses when discussing the various processes associated with the English word "generation." The closest German word, Erzeugung, can be used either generically" to form an idea, to create an effect or event" or as part of a scientific theory. Kant used Erzeugung in both senses repeatedly (234 times) across his corpus, and referred from his earliest works to scientific theories regarding cosmological formation (e.g., Universal Natural History and Theory of the Heavens, nineteen times), the generation of earth quakes and volcanoes, and the production of biological life, all by way of Erzeugung. The constellation of theories revolving around questions of organic generation was of special interest to Kant, and he spent time throughout his career considering the various processes by which the generation (Involution, five times; Epigenesis, ten times; Fortpflanzung, twenty-three times; Zeugung, thirty-three times) and subsequent development (Auswickelung, nine times; Entwickelung, twenty-five times) of an individual might occur.