How difficult is this to read, really? How long does it take? And finally, what do I have to read before it? I've read some Plato, but that's about it.
>>8056198
Know your Plato and Aristotle and be familiar with the moderns from Descartes to Hume
Then read up on Kant's career and where the CoPR fits
From there it's simply a matter of getting used to Kant's style, it can feel like you're smashing your head against a brick wall sometimes (especially once you get into the Dialectic) but if you're willing to take notes and re-read certain sections you shouldn't have too much trouble.
Kant is honestly pretty easy, it's just the vertical wall of a learning curve that turns a lot of people off.
I'm not OP, but I'm wondering how long the First Critique takes to read. As far as I'm aware, it's a pretty damn big book, as well as difficult. I am currently reading all the big names pre-Kant and I'm getting close to reading him.
>>8056198
Just make sure to take regular doses of penicilin if you ever begin to feel like you're enjoying it
>>8056198
>How difficult is this to read, really?
Very fucking difficult.
>How long does it take?
It takes a lot of time.
>What do I have to read before it?
Plato, Aristotle, Bacon, Descartes, Berkeley, Leibniz, Hume, Locke.
Start with Prolegomena.
>>8056262
Its 856 pages of Kant, its going to take somewhere between a long ass time and a fucking long ass time
>>8056198
Some self-pasta:
If you haven't done much philosophy, I wouldn't recommend starting with Kant. Really easy to burn out that way. If you want to get to him soon just read some Descartes and Hume. Or at least Hume (Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding). They're important background for Kant and a lot better writers.
Or, if you're absolutely set on Kant, I'd recommend starting with the Prolegomena. Maybe also skim some SEP articles.
http://plato.stanford.edu/search/searcher.py?query=kant
You might want to check out other secondary literature at some point, too. Here are some recommended books to look at when you get stuck on something: Allison's Kant's Transcendental Idealism, Kemp Smith's commentary, Ewing's commentary, Jonathan Bennett's Kant books, Guyer's Kant and the Claims of Knowledge (maybe the recent Routledge book by him too), Strawson's The Bounds of Sense.