At sixteen, Kant began his studies at the University of Königsberg. Here he first engaged with the ideas of the Enlightenment. Kant was enthusiastic about philosophy and about the then still new physics of Isaac Newton. At just twenty-two, he confidently published his first book, a work of natural philosophy.
After his father’s death in 1746, Kant spent at least six years, as was customary at that time, as a house tutor in the East Prussian provinces. It was the only period of his life during which Kant left Königsberg for any significant length of time. He used the rural stay for further studies; only after his return in 1755 did he complete his university degree as Magister.