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Full Idea
Universal self-ownership fails to ensure autonomy, since it tends to produce proletarians, who lack it.
Gist of Idea
Plenty of people have self-ownership, but still lack autonomy
Source
G.A. Cohen (Are Freedom and Equality Compatible? [1986], 3)
Book Ref
'Contemporary Political Philosophy (2nd ed)', ed/tr. Goodin,RE/Pettit,P [Blackwell 2006], p.423
A Reaction
The implication is that autonomy is not a property of individuals but a social phenomenon. Self-owning people can still be imprisoned. What about autonomy without self-ownership? A bright slave who is given extensive responsibility?
21733 | The right-wing conception of freedom is based on the idea of self-ownership [Cohen,GA] |
21734 | It is plausible that no one has an initial right to own land and natural resources [Cohen,GA] |
21735 | Every thing which is now private started out as unowned [Cohen,GA] |
21736 | It is doubtful whether any private property was originally acquired legitimately [Cohen,GA] |
21739 | Plenty of people have self-ownership, but still lack autonomy [Cohen,GA] |