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A New Scheme of Positive and Negative Freedom: Re-constructing T.H. Green on Freedom

Dimova-Cookson, Maria

Authors



Abstract

This article offers a new scheme of the relation between positive and negative freedom that is based on a retrieval of T. H. Green's theory of freedom and on further reconstructions of his theory. Some of the distinctions in the literature have proven difficult to sustain, and this has resulted in a weakening of the dichotomy in principle, and of the concepts of positive and negative freedom independently of each other. The main distinction between negative and positive freedom offered here is based on the relation of freedom to the will. We have two kinds of freedom, in both our private and social spheres, because there are two types of goods that we, as human beings, pursue: ordinary and moral. This distinction proves to be sustainable, manages to explain the antagonistic nature of the two concepts, and provides grounds for the support of the two kinds of freedom in their own right.

Citation

Dimova-Cookson, M. (2003). A New Scheme of Positive and Negative Freedom: Re-constructing T.H. Green on Freedom. Political Theory, 31(4), 508-532. https://doi.org/10.1177/0090591703254386

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Aug 1, 2003
Deposit Date Jan 28, 2009
Journal Political Theory
Print ISSN 0090-5917
Electronic ISSN 1552-7476
Publisher SAGE Publications
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 31
Issue 4
Pages 508-532
DOI https://doi.org/10.1177/0090591703254386
Keywords Personal freedom, Political freedom, Will, Moral good.