Single Idea 21780

[catalogued under 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 Reference

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.