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Single Idea 21780

[filed under theme 16. Persons / F. Free Will / 1. Nature of Free Will ]

Full Idea

For Hegel, the content or 'object' which any free will wills simply by virtue of being free is nothing other than its own freedom.

Gist of Idea

A free will primarily wills its own freedoom

Source

report of Georg W.F.Hegel (Elements of the Philosophy of Right [1821], 027) by Stephen Houlgate - An Introduction to Hegel 8 'The Limits'

Book Ref

Houlgate,Stephen: 'An Introduction to Hegel' [Blackwell 2005], p.184

A Reaction

Personally I take the concept of a wholly 'free' will to be vacuous, but this is a very interesting idea. I would delete 'by virtue of being free', and say that what we mean by free will is the will's desperation to be as free as possible. Love it.

The 53 ideas from 'Elements of the Philosophy of Right'

21787 Evil enters a good will when we believe we are doing right, but allow no criticism of our choice [Hegel, by Houlgate]
8029 You can't have a morality which is supplied by the individual, but is also genuinely universal [Hegel, by MacIntyre]
22051 The categorical imperative lacks roots in a historical culture [Hegel, by Bowie]
21988 In the 1840s Hegel seemed to defend society being right as it is, as a manifestation of Mind [Hegel, by Singer]
21790 Moral individuals become ethical when they see the social aspect of a matter [Hegel, by Houlgate]
8030 For Hegel, the moral life can only be led within a certain type of community [Hegel, by MacIntyre]
22085 Freedom requires us to submit to a family, or a corporation, or a state [Hegel, by Houlgate]
22767 I aim to portray the state as a rational entity [Hegel]
22766 Philosophy is exploration of the rational [Hegel]
21979 Wisdom emerges at the end of a process [Hegel]
21778 True liberal freedom is to pursue something, while being free to cease the pursuit [Hegel, by Houlgate]
21779 People assume they are free, but the options available are not under their control [Hegel]
22768 Subjective and objective are not firmly opposed, but merge into one another [Hegel]
21780 A free will primarily wills its own freedoom [Hegel, by Houlgate]
22769 The concept of the will is the free will which wills its freedom [Hegel]
22770 A person is a being which is aware of its own self-directed and free subjectivity [Hegel]
22771 Be a person, and respect other persons [Hegel]
22772 Personality overcomes subjective limitations and posits Dasein as its own [Hegel]
21782 Man has an absolute right to appropriate things [Hegel]
22773 Because only human beings can own property, everything else can become our property [Hegel]
22774 A community does not have the property-owning rights that a person has [Hegel]
22775 The owner of a thing is obviously the first person to freely take possession of it [Hegel]
22776 Slaves are partly responsible for their own condition [Hegel]
22777 Individuals must dedicate themselves to the ethical whole, and give their lives when asked [Hegel]
22778 Individuals can't leave the state, because they are natural citizens, and humans require a state [Hegel]
22779 The good is realised freedom [Hegel]
22780 It is a rejection of intellectual dignity to say that we cannot know the truth [Hegel]
22781 The categorical imperative is fine if you already have a set of moral principles [Hegel]
21786 Conscience is the right of the self to know what is right and obligatory, and thus make them true [Hegel]
22782 To have pagan beliefs and be a pagan are quite different [Hegel]
22783 Rights imply duties, and duties imply rights [Hegel]
22784 Love is ethical life in its natural form [Hegel]
22785 Even educated women are unsuited to science, philosophy, art and government [Hegel]
22786 Children need discipline, to break their self-will and eradicate sensuousness [Hegel]
22787 The family is the first basis of the state, but estates are a necessary second [Hegel]
22788 A human only become a somebody as a member of a social estate [Hegel]
22789 Society draws people, and requires their work, making them wholly dependent on it [Hegel]
22790 We cannot assert rights which are unnatural [Hegel]
22791 The state is the march of God in the world [Hegel]
21791 Social groups must focus on the state, which must in turn respect their inclusion and their will [Hegel]
21789 Slaves have no duties because they have no rights [Hegel]
22792 Individuals attain their right by discovering their self-consciousness in institutions [Hegel]
22793 Some religions lead to harsh servitude and the debasement of human beings [Hegel]
22795 People can achieve respect for their state by insight into its essence [Hegel]
22794 A fully developed state is conscious and knows what it wills [Hegel]
22796 A constitution embodies a nation's rights and condition [Hegel]
22798 Money is the best way to achieve just equality [Hegel]
22797 In modern states an individual's actions should be their choice [Hegel]
22799 The people do not have the ability to know the general will [Hegel]
22800 Majority rule means obligations can be imposed on me [Hegel]
21792 The state should reflect all interests, and not just popular will, or a popular party [Hegel, by Houlgate]
22801 The great man of the ages is the one who reveals and accomplishes the will of his time [Hegel]
22802 Wars add strength to a nation, and cure internal dissension [Hegel]