Andrews Reath
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199288830
- eISBN:
- 9780191603648
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199288836.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, History of Philosophy
This chapter distinguishes the various claims that make up the thesis that autonomy of the will is the foundation of morality, and offers a reconstruction of the arguments on which they depend. To do ...
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This chapter distinguishes the various claims that make up the thesis that autonomy of the will is the foundation of morality, and offers a reconstruction of the arguments on which they depend. To do so it argues that autonomy should be interpreted as a kind of sovereignty. The model for the autonomous agent is the political sovereign not subject to any outside authority, who has the power to enact law. The chapter proceeds as follows. Section II distinguishes some of the claims that go into Kant's doctrine of autonomy. Since the Sovereignty Thesis follows analytically from the concept of an unconditional moral requirement, Section III takes up Kant's concept of a practical law, to provide supporting material for later arguments. Sections IV to VII are organized around showing that the Formula of Universal Law (FUL) and the Formula of Autonomy (FA) are equivalent in content. The equivalence of the FUL and FA is established by the two ideas just cited (the Sovereignty Thesis and the claim that the FUL is the constitutive principle of a will with autonomy). It serves as a capsule statement of Kant's thesis that autonomy of the will is the foundation of morality. Finally, Section VIII shows how the normative conception of autonomy developed in this chapter bears on the analytical arguments of Groundwork, III, where Kant identifies freedom with autonomy on the way to arguing that a free will is subject to moral principles.Less
This chapter distinguishes the various claims that make up the thesis that autonomy of the will is the foundation of morality, and offers a reconstruction of the arguments on which they depend. To do so it argues that autonomy should be interpreted as a kind of sovereignty. The model for the autonomous agent is the political sovereign not subject to any outside authority, who has the power to enact law. The chapter proceeds as follows. Section II distinguishes some of the claims that go into Kant's doctrine of autonomy. Since the Sovereignty Thesis follows analytically from the concept of an unconditional moral requirement, Section III takes up Kant's concept of a practical law, to provide supporting material for later arguments. Sections IV to VII are organized around showing that the Formula of Universal Law (FUL) and the Formula of Autonomy (FA) are equivalent in content. The equivalence of the FUL and FA is established by the two ideas just cited (the Sovereignty Thesis and the claim that the FUL is the constitutive principle of a will with autonomy). It serves as a capsule statement of Kant's thesis that autonomy of the will is the foundation of morality. Finally, Section VIII shows how the normative conception of autonomy developed in this chapter bears on the analytical arguments of Groundwork, III, where Kant identifies freedom with autonomy on the way to arguing that a free will is subject to moral principles.
Allen Buchanan
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- April 2004
- ISBN:
- 9780198295358
- eISBN:
- 9780191600982
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198295359.003.0004
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This chapter grapples with the most controversial topic in the discourse of human rights: distributive justice. The chief questions to be addressed are (1) whether a justice‐based international legal ...
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This chapter grapples with the most controversial topic in the discourse of human rights: distributive justice. The chief questions to be addressed are (1) whether a justice‐based international legal order should include rights of distributive justice (sometimes called social and economic rights) for individuals that exceed the right to the means of subsistence that is already widely recognized in international and regional human rights instruments, and (2) whether international law should recognize not only individuals but collectivities such as states or “peoples” or nations as having rights of distributive justice. To situate these questions, the chapter begins by considering alternative explanations for widespread skepticism about the possibility that distributive justice can have a significant place in the international legal order. The remaining sections of the chapter discuss: I. The Place of Distributive Justice in International Law; II. Reasons for Rejecting a Prominent Role for Distributive Justice in International Law Today; III. Deep Distributive Pluralism; IV. Societal Distributive Autonomy; and V. Institutional Capacity and Lack of Political Will.Less
This chapter grapples with the most controversial topic in the discourse of human rights: distributive justice. The chief questions to be addressed are (1) whether a justice‐based international legal order should include rights of distributive justice (sometimes called social and economic rights) for individuals that exceed the right to the means of subsistence that is already widely recognized in international and regional human rights instruments, and (2) whether international law should recognize not only individuals but collectivities such as states or “peoples” or nations as having rights of distributive justice. To situate these questions, the chapter begins by considering alternative explanations for widespread skepticism about the possibility that distributive justice can have a significant place in the international legal order. The remaining sections of the chapter discuss: I. The Place of Distributive Justice in International Law; II. Reasons for Rejecting a Prominent Role for Distributive Justice in International Law Today; III. Deep Distributive Pluralism; IV. Societal Distributive Autonomy; and V. Institutional Capacity and Lack of Political Will.
Jarle Trondal
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199579426
- eISBN:
- 9780191722714
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199579426.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics, European Union
Chapter 3 explores and reassesses the autonomy of the Commission. The ambition of this chapter is to reassess the behavioural autonomy of the Commission, as well as organizational conditions ...
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Chapter 3 explores and reassesses the autonomy of the Commission. The ambition of this chapter is to reassess the behavioural autonomy of the Commission, as well as organizational conditions thereof. To accomplish this, Chapter 3 utilizes one under‐researched laboratory of the Commission: seconded national experts (SNEs). It is argued that SNEs may serve as a crucial test‐bed of Commission autonomy due to SNEs' ambiguous and short‐term affiliation towards the Commission. Whereas past studies claims that SNEs have a predominant intergovernmental behavioural pattern, this chapter demonstrates that the SNEs foremost blend departmental, epistemic, and supranational behavioural dynamics, thereby safeguarding their behavioural autonomy. This chapter also demonstrates that the autonomy of the Commission is organizationally contingent and not only subject to what Lipsky (1980: 19) calls actors' conspicuous desire for autonomy.Less
Chapter 3 explores and reassesses the autonomy of the Commission. The ambition of this chapter is to reassess the behavioural autonomy of the Commission, as well as organizational conditions thereof. To accomplish this, Chapter 3 utilizes one under‐researched laboratory of the Commission: seconded national experts (SNEs). It is argued that SNEs may serve as a crucial test‐bed of Commission autonomy due to SNEs' ambiguous and short‐term affiliation towards the Commission. Whereas past studies claims that SNEs have a predominant intergovernmental behavioural pattern, this chapter demonstrates that the SNEs foremost blend departmental, epistemic, and supranational behavioural dynamics, thereby safeguarding their behavioural autonomy. This chapter also demonstrates that the autonomy of the Commission is organizationally contingent and not only subject to what Lipsky (1980: 19) calls actors' conspicuous desire for autonomy.
Raymond Plant
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199281756
- eISBN:
- 9780191713040
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199281756.003.0011
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics, Political Theory
In this chapter the neo‐liberal account of freedom and coercion expounded in Chapter 3 is subjected to sustained critical analysis and is found wanting in its own terms. This is crucially important ...
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In this chapter the neo‐liberal account of freedom and coercion expounded in Chapter 3 is subjected to sustained critical analysis and is found wanting in its own terms. This is crucially important because the neo‐liberal society is supposed to be a society which has freedom as one of, if not, its central constitutive value. Hence, if this concept and the linked idea of coercion cannot be made coherent in the terms which neo‐liberals allow themselves then this puts a very serious question mark against the neo‐liberal project.Less
In this chapter the neo‐liberal account of freedom and coercion expounded in Chapter 3 is subjected to sustained critical analysis and is found wanting in its own terms. This is crucially important because the neo‐liberal society is supposed to be a society which has freedom as one of, if not, its central constitutive value. Hence, if this concept and the linked idea of coercion cannot be made coherent in the terms which neo‐liberals allow themselves then this puts a very serious question mark against the neo‐liberal project.
Phil Edwards
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719078736
- eISBN:
- 9781781702192
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719078736.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
In the mid-1970s, a wave of contentious radicalism swept through Italy. Groups and movements such as ‘Proletarian youth’, ‘metropolitan Indians’ and ‘the area of Autonomy’ practised new forms of ...
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In the mid-1970s, a wave of contentious radicalism swept through Italy. Groups and movements such as ‘Proletarian youth’, ‘metropolitan Indians’ and ‘the area of Autonomy’ practised new forms of activism, which were confrontational and often violent. Creative and brutal, intransigent and playful, the movements flourished briefly before being suppressed through heavy policing and political exclusion. This is a full-length study of these movements. Building on Sidney Tarrow's ‘cycle of contention’ model and drawing on a wide range of Italian materials, it tells the story of a unique group of political movements, and of their disastrous engagement with the mainstream Left. As well as shedding light on a neglected period of twentieth century history, this book offers lessons for understanding today's contentious movements (‘No Global’, ‘Black Bloc’) and today's ‘armed struggle’ groups.Less
In the mid-1970s, a wave of contentious radicalism swept through Italy. Groups and movements such as ‘Proletarian youth’, ‘metropolitan Indians’ and ‘the area of Autonomy’ practised new forms of activism, which were confrontational and often violent. Creative and brutal, intransigent and playful, the movements flourished briefly before being suppressed through heavy policing and political exclusion. This is a full-length study of these movements. Building on Sidney Tarrow's ‘cycle of contention’ model and drawing on a wide range of Italian materials, it tells the story of a unique group of political movements, and of their disastrous engagement with the mainstream Left. As well as shedding light on a neglected period of twentieth century history, this book offers lessons for understanding today's contentious movements (‘No Global’, ‘Black Bloc’) and today's ‘armed struggle’ groups.
A.G. Noorani
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198074083
- eISBN:
- 9780199080786
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198074083.003.0013
- Subject:
- Political Science, Indian Politics
This chapter deals with the restoration of the autonomy of Jammu & Kashmir. The first section presents the memorandum of the National Conference to the Prime Minister on 4 November 1995. The second ...
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This chapter deals with the restoration of the autonomy of Jammu & Kashmir. The first section presents the memorandum of the National Conference to the Prime Minister on 4 November 1995. The second section cites extracts from the report of the State Autonomy Committee in 1999. The third section cites extracts from the debate in the J&K Assembly on the Autonomy Report 2000 and its resolution thereon. The fourth section presents some extracts from Justice Saghir Ahmad’s report in 2009. The last section contains a proposal for the Draft Article 370.Less
This chapter deals with the restoration of the autonomy of Jammu & Kashmir. The first section presents the memorandum of the National Conference to the Prime Minister on 4 November 1995. The second section cites extracts from the report of the State Autonomy Committee in 1999. The third section cites extracts from the debate in the J&K Assembly on the Autonomy Report 2000 and its resolution thereon. The fourth section presents some extracts from Justice Saghir Ahmad’s report in 2009. The last section contains a proposal for the Draft Article 370.
Jill Stauffer
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780231171502
- eISBN:
- 9780231538732
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231171502.003.0002
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
Establishes what ethical loneliness is and why it is a problem. Supports its argument both with a phenomenology of the concept and support from concrete cases of injustice.
Establishes what ethical loneliness is and why it is a problem. Supports its argument both with a phenomenology of the concept and support from concrete cases of injustice.
Hina Nazar
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780823240074
- eISBN:
- 9780823240111
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823240074.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, European Literature
Enlightened Sentiments reassesses the eighteenth century's liberal legacies by revisiting the wide-ranging development of eighteenth-century letters known as “sentimentalism.” It suggests that the ...
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Enlightened Sentiments reassesses the eighteenth century's liberal legacies by revisiting the wide-ranging development of eighteenth-century letters known as “sentimentalism.” It suggests that the recent retrieval of sentimentalism as a predominantly affective culture of sensibility elides its critical motif of moral and aesthetic judgment, and obscures the movement's contributions to one of the Enlightenment's most important, and in recent times, contentious norms—the ideal of autonomy. Drawing upon novelists from Samuel Richardson to Jane Austen, and theorists of judgment from David Hume to Hannah Arendt, the study contends that sentimental judgment complicates long-standing interpretations of liberal ethics as grounded in the opposition of reason and feeling, and autonomy and sociability. As such, sentimental literature and philosophy implies a powerful counter-challenge to postmodernist critiques of modernity as the harbinger principally of instrumentalist reason and disciplinary power.Less
Enlightened Sentiments reassesses the eighteenth century's liberal legacies by revisiting the wide-ranging development of eighteenth-century letters known as “sentimentalism.” It suggests that the recent retrieval of sentimentalism as a predominantly affective culture of sensibility elides its critical motif of moral and aesthetic judgment, and obscures the movement's contributions to one of the Enlightenment's most important, and in recent times, contentious norms—the ideal of autonomy. Drawing upon novelists from Samuel Richardson to Jane Austen, and theorists of judgment from David Hume to Hannah Arendt, the study contends that sentimental judgment complicates long-standing interpretations of liberal ethics as grounded in the opposition of reason and feeling, and autonomy and sociability. As such, sentimental literature and philosophy implies a powerful counter-challenge to postmodernist critiques of modernity as the harbinger principally of instrumentalist reason and disciplinary power.
Timothy Fowler and Timothy Fowler
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781529201635
- eISBN:
- 9781529201680
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781529201635.003.0007
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Ethical Issues and Debates
In this chapter, I discuss what perfectionism for children entails. In this context, perfectionism refers to the view that the state is empowered to promote people’s welfare by taking actions ...
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In this chapter, I discuss what perfectionism for children entails. In this context, perfectionism refers to the view that the state is empowered to promote people’s welfare by taking actions premised on a contested view of ethics. Whereas previous discussions have been focussed on individual achievements in fields like the arts or sport, I argue this rests on an implausibly narrow view of personal flourishing. In addition, I argue against the view that perfectionism should aim only, or mostly, at the promotion of autonomy. While critical thinking and self-reflection are often central to a good life, they are far from sufficient. Instead, promoting the welfare of children requires them to come to hold ethical beliefs conducive to their flourishing; they must hold a positive and plausible conception of the good.Less
In this chapter, I discuss what perfectionism for children entails. In this context, perfectionism refers to the view that the state is empowered to promote people’s welfare by taking actions premised on a contested view of ethics. Whereas previous discussions have been focussed on individual achievements in fields like the arts or sport, I argue this rests on an implausibly narrow view of personal flourishing. In addition, I argue against the view that perfectionism should aim only, or mostly, at the promotion of autonomy. While critical thinking and self-reflection are often central to a good life, they are far from sufficient. Instead, promoting the welfare of children requires them to come to hold ethical beliefs conducive to their flourishing; they must hold a positive and plausible conception of the good.
Louise Campbell
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780719099465
- eISBN:
- 9781526104410
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719099465.003.0005
- Subject:
- Sociology, Culture
This chapter provides an analysis of the main ethical issues which arise in the debate about assisted suicide, with particular attention to the role played by the concept of autonomy in the ...
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This chapter provides an analysis of the main ethical issues which arise in the debate about assisted suicide, with particular attention to the role played by the concept of autonomy in the discussion. The concept of autonomy plays a prominent role in justifying claims that a terminally-ill person should have a right to determine the point at which his or her life should end. However, opponents of assisted suicide argue both that such claims distort the meaning of autonomy and that autonomy should not be prioritised when its exercise threatens the rights or interests of healthcare professionals, family members or others. The chapter attempts to determine whether the concept of autonomy is capable of supporting the arguments on both sides of the discussion which rely on it. It examines briefly the evolution of the concept of autonomy in healthcare generally and analyses the role played by arguments from autonomy in support of, and against, the permissibility of assisted dying/suicide. It provides a critique of the use of the concept of autonomy on both sides of the debate and examine the implications of this critique for the validity of the concept of autonomy in healthcare more generally.Less
This chapter provides an analysis of the main ethical issues which arise in the debate about assisted suicide, with particular attention to the role played by the concept of autonomy in the discussion. The concept of autonomy plays a prominent role in justifying claims that a terminally-ill person should have a right to determine the point at which his or her life should end. However, opponents of assisted suicide argue both that such claims distort the meaning of autonomy and that autonomy should not be prioritised when its exercise threatens the rights or interests of healthcare professionals, family members or others. The chapter attempts to determine whether the concept of autonomy is capable of supporting the arguments on both sides of the discussion which rely on it. It examines briefly the evolution of the concept of autonomy in healthcare generally and analyses the role played by arguments from autonomy in support of, and against, the permissibility of assisted dying/suicide. It provides a critique of the use of the concept of autonomy on both sides of the debate and examine the implications of this critique for the validity of the concept of autonomy in healthcare more generally.
Asim A. Sheikh
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780719099465
- eISBN:
- 9781526104410
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719099465.003.0007
- Subject:
- Sociology, Culture
This chapter asks whether the language and idea of the doctor-patient partnership, which embraces the notion of patient autonomy, is one which also places responsibilities on patients as well as on ...
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This chapter asks whether the language and idea of the doctor-patient partnership, which embraces the notion of patient autonomy, is one which also places responsibilities on patients as well as on healthcare providers. This chapter outlines the duties and responsibilities of doctors and the development of the understanding of the doctor-patient relationship as one of partnership. It analyses the implications of this, looking at the legal responsibilities of the autonomous patient in the context of an action for medical negligence.Less
This chapter asks whether the language and idea of the doctor-patient partnership, which embraces the notion of patient autonomy, is one which also places responsibilities on patients as well as on healthcare providers. This chapter outlines the duties and responsibilities of doctors and the development of the understanding of the doctor-patient relationship as one of partnership. It analyses the implications of this, looking at the legal responsibilities of the autonomous patient in the context of an action for medical negligence.
Stathis Gourgouris
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780823253784
- eISBN:
- 9780823261215
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823253784.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This book reconfigures recent secularism debates, by showing (1) how the secular imagination is closely linked to society’s radical poiesis, its capacity to imagine and create unprecedented forms of ...
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This book reconfigures recent secularism debates, by showing (1) how the secular imagination is closely linked to society’s radical poiesis, its capacity to imagine and create unprecedented forms of worldly existence; and (2) how the space of the secular animates the desire for a radical democratic politics that overturns inherited modes of subjugation, whether religious or secularist. For Gourgouris, secular criticism is a form of political being: critical, antifoundational, disobedient, anarchic, yet not negative for negation’s sake but creative of new forms of collective reflection, interrogation, and action that alter not only the current terrain of dominant politics but also the very self-conceptualization of what it means to be human.Less
This book reconfigures recent secularism debates, by showing (1) how the secular imagination is closely linked to society’s radical poiesis, its capacity to imagine and create unprecedented forms of worldly existence; and (2) how the space of the secular animates the desire for a radical democratic politics that overturns inherited modes of subjugation, whether religious or secularist. For Gourgouris, secular criticism is a form of political being: critical, antifoundational, disobedient, anarchic, yet not negative for negation’s sake but creative of new forms of collective reflection, interrogation, and action that alter not only the current terrain of dominant politics but also the very self-conceptualization of what it means to be human.
Gabriela Basterra
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780823265145
- eISBN:
- 9780823266883
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823265145.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Political Philosophy
The Subject of Freedom explores the idea of freedom theoretically as the limit that enables thinking, and practically as something other that constitutes subjectivity. Kant's introduction in the ...
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The Subject of Freedom explores the idea of freedom theoretically as the limit that enables thinking, and practically as something other that constitutes subjectivity. Kant's introduction in the third antinomy of an unconditioned freedom necessitates “the human being” that would embody it. In being constituted by freedom, this book proposes, the subject plays the role of the unconditioned that bounds objectivity. But explaining how freedom constitutes ethical subjects lies beyond reason's reach. The challenge practical philosophy faces is explaining how something that exceeds knowledge constitutes subjectivity and manifests itself through the subject's effects in the world. Traversed by an excess that lies beyond reason's ability to represent, what we here call subjectivity surpasses the bounds of self-conscious identity and its impulse to represent world and self as objects of thought. What, then, is ethical subjectivity? What is its relationship with the excess that allows it to emerge? Tracing Kant's concept of freedom from the Critique of Pure Reason to his practical works, this book elaborates some of Kant's most challenging insights in dialogue with Levinas's Otherwise than Being. It proposes that Otherwise than Being offers a deeply Kantian critique of Kant that pursues Kant's most revolutionary insights into ethics to their ultimate consequences, shedding unprecedented light on them. These insights, which have not necessarily prevailed in our time, have the potential to surprise and energize our thinking on the ethical and the political today. This book ultimately argues that the autonomous subjectivity freedom constitutes must be understood as a relationship with the alterity or excess that animates its core.Less
The Subject of Freedom explores the idea of freedom theoretically as the limit that enables thinking, and practically as something other that constitutes subjectivity. Kant's introduction in the third antinomy of an unconditioned freedom necessitates “the human being” that would embody it. In being constituted by freedom, this book proposes, the subject plays the role of the unconditioned that bounds objectivity. But explaining how freedom constitutes ethical subjects lies beyond reason's reach. The challenge practical philosophy faces is explaining how something that exceeds knowledge constitutes subjectivity and manifests itself through the subject's effects in the world. Traversed by an excess that lies beyond reason's ability to represent, what we here call subjectivity surpasses the bounds of self-conscious identity and its impulse to represent world and self as objects of thought. What, then, is ethical subjectivity? What is its relationship with the excess that allows it to emerge? Tracing Kant's concept of freedom from the Critique of Pure Reason to his practical works, this book elaborates some of Kant's most challenging insights in dialogue with Levinas's Otherwise than Being. It proposes that Otherwise than Being offers a deeply Kantian critique of Kant that pursues Kant's most revolutionary insights into ethics to their ultimate consequences, shedding unprecedented light on them. These insights, which have not necessarily prevailed in our time, have the potential to surprise and energize our thinking on the ethical and the political today. This book ultimately argues that the autonomous subjectivity freedom constitutes must be understood as a relationship with the alterity or excess that animates its core.
Johann P. Arnason
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781474455893
- eISBN:
- 9781474480604
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474455893.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
The main focus of the chapter is on the first half of the short twentieth century as a background to European integration, but it contains some reflections on subsequent developments. Against the ...
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The main focus of the chapter is on the first half of the short twentieth century as a background to European integration, but it contains some reflections on subsequent developments. Against the
widely current description of the period from 1914 to 1945 as a time of European civil war, it is argued that the notion of a civilisational crisis is more adequate, and this crisis is best understood in terms of modernity as a distinctive civilisation with specific European variations. Global wars and totalitarian regimes, based on ideological absolutizations of class and nation as historical actors, are the defining features of the crisis period. The following phase, characterised by the Cold War, was partly a step beyond the crisis, partly a perpetuation of its dynamics. The process of European integration, unfolding in this context, was a response to the most traumatic experiences of the crisis, but also an attempt to move beyond the constellation that had proved conducive to disasters. This latter aspect may be described as the civilisational dimension of the European project. The concatenation of circumstances and intentions is a matter for historical interpretation, rather than strong theories; in this regard, the work of Alan Milward is exemplary.Less
The main focus of the chapter is on the first half of the short twentieth century as a background to European integration, but it contains some reflections on subsequent developments. Against the
widely current description of the period from 1914 to 1945 as a time of European civil war, it is argued that the notion of a civilisational crisis is more adequate, and this crisis is best understood in terms of modernity as a distinctive civilisation with specific European variations. Global wars and totalitarian regimes, based on ideological absolutizations of class and nation as historical actors, are the defining features of the crisis period. The following phase, characterised by the Cold War, was partly a step beyond the crisis, partly a perpetuation of its dynamics. The process of European integration, unfolding in this context, was a response to the most traumatic experiences of the crisis, but also an attempt to move beyond the constellation that had proved conducive to disasters. This latter aspect may be described as the civilisational dimension of the European project. The concatenation of circumstances and intentions is a matter for historical interpretation, rather than strong theories; in this regard, the work of Alan Milward is exemplary.
John Sturzaker and Alexander Nurse
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781447350774
- eISBN:
- 9781447350828
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447350774.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, Public Policy
Some have argued that reforms to urban governance in the UK in recent years have “hollowed out” the local level, emphasising the levels “above” and “below” it. This reflects a broader perceived loss ...
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Some have argued that reforms to urban governance in the UK in recent years have “hollowed out” the local level, emphasising the levels “above” and “below” it. This reflects a broader perceived loss of focus on cities themselves, but a great deal of power and responsibility still remains at the local authority level. This chapter considers how local government autonomy has changed in recent years, within the context of a broader history of local government in the UK. It then reflects upon the “entrepreneurial turn” in local government, for some a consequence of reduced funding for local authorities, and considers recent evidence of a return to “municipal socialism” in England and beyond.Less
Some have argued that reforms to urban governance in the UK in recent years have “hollowed out” the local level, emphasising the levels “above” and “below” it. This reflects a broader perceived loss of focus on cities themselves, but a great deal of power and responsibility still remains at the local authority level. This chapter considers how local government autonomy has changed in recent years, within the context of a broader history of local government in the UK. It then reflects upon the “entrepreneurial turn” in local government, for some a consequence of reduced funding for local authorities, and considers recent evidence of a return to “municipal socialism” in England and beyond.
Ezio Di Nucci
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780262036689
- eISBN:
- 9780262341981
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262036689.003.0005
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
This chapter argues that the right to sexual satisfaction of severely physically and mentally disabled people, and elderly people who suffer from neurodegenerative diseases, can be fulfilled by ...
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This chapter argues that the right to sexual satisfaction of severely physically and mentally disabled people, and elderly people who suffer from neurodegenerative diseases, can be fulfilled by deploying sex robots. This would enable us to satisfy the sexual needs of many who cannot provide for their own sexual satisfaction without at the same time violating anybody’s right to sexual self-determination. It does not offer a full-blown moral justification of deploying sex robots in such cases, as not all morally relevant concerns can be addressed here; rather, it puts forward a plausible way of fulfilling acute sexual needs without thereby violating anybody’s sexual rights.Less
This chapter argues that the right to sexual satisfaction of severely physically and mentally disabled people, and elderly people who suffer from neurodegenerative diseases, can be fulfilled by deploying sex robots. This would enable us to satisfy the sexual needs of many who cannot provide for their own sexual satisfaction without at the same time violating anybody’s right to sexual self-determination. It does not offer a full-blown moral justification of deploying sex robots in such cases, as not all morally relevant concerns can be addressed here; rather, it puts forward a plausible way of fulfilling acute sexual needs without thereby violating anybody’s sexual rights.
Charlotte Dale
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780719099700
- eISBN:
- 9781526104397
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719099700.003.0004
- Subject:
- History, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine
At the commencement of the Second Anglo-Boer War the small cohort of nurses available for service in South Africa were insufficient to meet the demands inherent with the exigencies of modern warfare ...
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At the commencement of the Second Anglo-Boer War the small cohort of nurses available for service in South Africa were insufficient to meet the demands inherent with the exigencies of modern warfare and ever-increasing numbers of sick and wounded. Around 1,400 civilian nurses from across the Empire served in varying capacities during the South African campaign, yet there was no defined overall control of those lay women and trained nurses who offered their services. From 1891 Nurse Registration in the Cape had been established in law, yet there was no demarcation over the role and responsibilities of British nurses serving in South Africa. Concerns were raised that some nurses were motivated for wartime service owing to a search for adventure in the colonies. Yet there were a number of motivators, including those of a humanitarian nature, combined with a patriotic sense of duty. This chapter will examine how accusations that nurses were ‘frivolling’ in South Africa, raised concerns over control and organization of nurses in future military campaigns and had an impact on discussions over levels of authority female nurses might be allowed in the new Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Military Nursing Service, established at the close of war in 1902.Less
At the commencement of the Second Anglo-Boer War the small cohort of nurses available for service in South Africa were insufficient to meet the demands inherent with the exigencies of modern warfare and ever-increasing numbers of sick and wounded. Around 1,400 civilian nurses from across the Empire served in varying capacities during the South African campaign, yet there was no defined overall control of those lay women and trained nurses who offered their services. From 1891 Nurse Registration in the Cape had been established in law, yet there was no demarcation over the role and responsibilities of British nurses serving in South Africa. Concerns were raised that some nurses were motivated for wartime service owing to a search for adventure in the colonies. Yet there were a number of motivators, including those of a humanitarian nature, combined with a patriotic sense of duty. This chapter will examine how accusations that nurses were ‘frivolling’ in South Africa, raised concerns over control and organization of nurses in future military campaigns and had an impact on discussions over levels of authority female nurses might be allowed in the new Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Military Nursing Service, established at the close of war in 1902.
Gerry Hassan
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- May 2021
- ISBN:
- 9781474455626
- eISBN:
- 9781474491181
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9781474455626.003.0012
- Subject:
- Political Science, UK Politics
Scottish nationalism and Scottish Tory unionism are generally accepted as two irreconcilable forces. This chapter by Gerry Hassan argues that while this might be how both movements wish to see ...
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Scottish nationalism and Scottish Tory unionism are generally accepted as two irreconcilable forces. This chapter by Gerry Hassan argues that while this might be how both movements wish to see themselves, the reality is more nuanced. It argues that for much of Scotland’s existence as part of the Union, these supposedly opposing forces have actually coalesced in what has been called ‘unionist-nationalism’, a politics of autonomy and distinctiveness within the union. Hassan’s chapter further explores the limitations of this bifurcation of Scottish politics, as well as the shortcomings of the politics it articulates in the context of Ruth Davidson’s eight-year tenure as Scottish Conservative Party leader. It assesses how her leadership was perceived in this framework and what the party’s future prospects might be.Less
Scottish nationalism and Scottish Tory unionism are generally accepted as two irreconcilable forces. This chapter by Gerry Hassan argues that while this might be how both movements wish to see themselves, the reality is more nuanced. It argues that for much of Scotland’s existence as part of the Union, these supposedly opposing forces have actually coalesced in what has been called ‘unionist-nationalism’, a politics of autonomy and distinctiveness within the union. Hassan’s chapter further explores the limitations of this bifurcation of Scottish politics, as well as the shortcomings of the politics it articulates in the context of Ruth Davidson’s eight-year tenure as Scottish Conservative Party leader. It assesses how her leadership was perceived in this framework and what the party’s future prospects might be.
Daniel K L Chua
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- September 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780199769322
- eISBN:
- 9780190657253
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199769322.001.0001
- Subject:
- Music, Philosophy of Music, Theory, Analysis, Composition
Beethoven’s music is often associated with freedom. Chua explores the nature of this relationship through an investigation of the philosophical context of Beethoven’s reception and hermeneutic ...
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Beethoven’s music is often associated with freedom. Chua explores the nature of this relationship through an investigation of the philosophical context of Beethoven’s reception and hermeneutic readings of key works. Freedom is arguably the core value of modernity since late eighteenth-century; Beethoven’s music engages with its aspirations and dilemmas, providing a sonic ‘lens’ that enables us to focus on the aesthetic, philosophical, and theological ramifications of its claims of progress and autonomy and the formation of the self and its values. Taking his bearings from Adorno’s fragmentary reflections on Beethoven, Chua charts a journey from the heroic freedom associated with the Eroica Symphony to a freedom of vulnerability that opens itself to ‘otherness’. Chua’s analysis of the music demonstrates how various forms of freedom are embodied in the way time and space are manipulated in Beethoven’s works, providing an experience of a concept that Kant had famously declared inaccessible to sense. Beethoven’s music, then, does not simply mirror freedom; it is a philosophical and poetic engagement with the idea that is as relevant today as it was in the aftermath of the French Revolution.Less
Beethoven’s music is often associated with freedom. Chua explores the nature of this relationship through an investigation of the philosophical context of Beethoven’s reception and hermeneutic readings of key works. Freedom is arguably the core value of modernity since late eighteenth-century; Beethoven’s music engages with its aspirations and dilemmas, providing a sonic ‘lens’ that enables us to focus on the aesthetic, philosophical, and theological ramifications of its claims of progress and autonomy and the formation of the self and its values. Taking his bearings from Adorno’s fragmentary reflections on Beethoven, Chua charts a journey from the heroic freedom associated with the Eroica Symphony to a freedom of vulnerability that opens itself to ‘otherness’. Chua’s analysis of the music demonstrates how various forms of freedom are embodied in the way time and space are manipulated in Beethoven’s works, providing an experience of a concept that Kant had famously declared inaccessible to sense. Beethoven’s music, then, does not simply mirror freedom; it is a philosophical and poetic engagement with the idea that is as relevant today as it was in the aftermath of the French Revolution.
Simon Armitage
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780197266519
- eISBN:
- 9780191884238
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197266519.003.0002
- Subject:
- Literature, Poetry
In a personal and anecdotal chapter, Simon Armitage reflects on a number of encounters with the poetry of Tony Harrison and with Harrison himself. Armitage locates in Harrison's approach to writing a ...
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In a personal and anecdotal chapter, Simon Armitage reflects on a number of encounters with the poetry of Tony Harrison and with Harrison himself. Armitage locates in Harrison's approach to writing a poetry that is "communicative, clear, local, but at the same time crafted, literary, and universal", a poetry at odds with and in defiance of the prevailing post-modern aesthetic of difficulty and obscurity. He celebrates Harrison's poetic autonomy which he associates with the poet's life outside academia, allowing Harrison see himself as a 'poet of the people', despite his scholarly intelligence and his life-long immersion in classical literature.Less
In a personal and anecdotal chapter, Simon Armitage reflects on a number of encounters with the poetry of Tony Harrison and with Harrison himself. Armitage locates in Harrison's approach to writing a poetry that is "communicative, clear, local, but at the same time crafted, literary, and universal", a poetry at odds with and in defiance of the prevailing post-modern aesthetic of difficulty and obscurity. He celebrates Harrison's poetic autonomy which he associates with the poet's life outside academia, allowing Harrison see himself as a 'poet of the people', despite his scholarly intelligence and his life-long immersion in classical literature.
