Immanuel Kant

Immanuel Kant (April 22, 1724 – February 12, 1804) was a Prussian Enlightenment philosopher, as well as one of the key figures in the modern genre of philosophy. One of Kant's ideas was the concept of perpetual peace, and that it was an unnatural state for humanity and thus required that humans make it for themselves, even advocating the complete elimination of standing armies. This ideal was transcribed in a philosophical treatise called Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch, or Perpetual Peace, as it was called in 1795.

In 1974, when first contacting Snake, aka, Big Boss via a radio since her and Professor Galvez's hiring of the Militaires Sans Frontières to drive out the CIA-backed mercenary group Peace Sentinel, Paz Ortega Andrade briefly quoted Immanuel Kant by claiming that she learned in school that peace is an unnatural state for mankind, and that they ought to make it for themselves to preserve relationships with people, although Big Boss admitted he never understood what it's like.Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Kojima Productions (2010) Kazuhira Miller: Snake, I rigged that radio so you can contact our young lady friend Paz. // Snake (Big Boss): Is she OK? // Miller: No need to worry. She's tougher than you think... // Snake: Still just a kid. // Miller: Which is exactly why she could be an effective source of information. Besides, that little angel de la paz is the one who gave us this mission, right? // Snake: ...I guess. // Miller: I'll put her on. // Paz Ortega Andrade: Snake... // Snake: Paz. Where are you? // Paz: Ciudad Colón. A school. The teacher told me to stay here until things quiet down. // Snake: Teacher? Oh, him. He's... Yeah, that's probably good advice. // Paz: Si. He has a radio in his room, so we can talk anytime. // Snake: ...Pretty fancy for a teacher. // Paz: Promise me, Snake, that you'll bring back peace. And... // Snake: I know. I'll contact you if I find your friend. // Paz: Thank you. Snake, if you need to know about Costa Rica - the geography, the climate, the wildlife, anything - just ask me. I know about its history and laws, too. We learned it all in school. // Snake: Got it. I have a question, I'll ask. // Paz: ...I, uh... // Snake: What? // Paz: In school I also learned that peace is an unnatural state for human society. And that war is a constant threat to our relationship with others. // Snake: That's right. // Paz: So, to achieve peace, we have to create it ourselves. Crying about it won't bring it about, or make it last. Each one of us must go and seek it out. // Snake: You won't find it without making sacrifices. No offense, but I don't know what peace is. Never felt what it's like. Never even been interested in it. Paz: Snake...? // Snake: Ah, sorry. Listen Paz, I think your ideas are... admirable, and I hope they turn out to be right. // Paz: Yeah, me too. // Snake: Peace is in your name. Who better to help bring it back? // Paz: Thanks, Snake. I will be here whenever you need me. See you later. Miller: Snake, use your radio to call people. But stay alert. You're in the middle of a mission, and you can't afford to let your guard down. // Snake: Got it. // Miller: Need to know more about Costa Rica? Paz can help you out. Snake: Good to know. // Miller: We'll follow their transport route. That should take us straight to their main base. // Snake: From what I've seen, it looks like nukes. // Miller: Agreed. The key thing now is to confirm whether those "spears" really are what we think they are, and if so, why they're here. Snake: Follow the transport route, find the nukes. // Miller: That's what I'm thinking. First we should make contact with the Sandinista comandante. They can tell us more about what's up ahead. But it looks like their hideout's already come under attack. // Snake: We'd better hope they're still alive. Miller: Snake, infiltrate that cabin and secure the Sandinistas' comandante. Neutralize any guards by knocking them out, putting them to sleep, or even using the Fulton recovery system. You choose how to handle it, Boss. Snake later asked her about what she was talking about, with her then explaining who Immanuel Kant was and his treatise where he made this claim. Although Big Boss still believed that you have to work for peace even if it means making sacrifices, he still supported her ideals.

Behind the scenes
Immanuel Kant is an incidental character in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, with his being quoted twice: the first time in the beginning of the game upon starting a new game, and the second time in the ending of the fourth chapter. Both instances were direct quotations from his book Perpetual Peace, specifically the second and first chapters, respectively. Aside from this, Paz also alludes to him twice, the first time during the briefing for the mission "find the Sandinista Comandante", and the second time in the relevant briefing file.

Appearances

 * Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (mentioned only)