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75. - Freedom (Political)

from F

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 January 2025

By
Justin Steinberg
Edited by
Karolina Hübner  and
Justin Steinberg
Karolina Hübner
Affiliation:
Cornell University, New York
Justin Steinberg
Affiliation:
Cornell University, New York
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Summary

Freedom (libertas) and unfreedom (servitudo) are unquestionably central moral concepts for Spinoza. This is reflected in the titles to the last two parts of the Ethics, “Of Human Bondage” and “Of the Power of the Intellect, or On Human Freedom,” respectively. As a moral concept, freedom consists in the power to exist and act from one’s nature alone, which is a matter of gaining rational control over one’s affects, coming to know oneself and God, and experiencing the kind of love and contentment of mind (acquiescentia animi) that arises from such knowledge. Henceforth, I will refer to this sense of freedom as ‘moral’ freedom.

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Chapter
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The Cambridge Spinoza Lexicon , pp. 191 - 194
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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References

Recommended Reading

Armstrong, A., Green, K., and Sangiacomo, A. (eds.). (2019). Spinoza and Relational Autonomy: Being with Others. Edinburgh University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
James, S. (2020). Freedom, slavery, and the passions. In James, , Spinoza on Learning to Live Together. Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kisner, M. J. (2012). Spinoza’s liberalism. Philosophy Compass, 7(11), 782–93.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lærke, M. (2021). Spinoza and the Freedom of Philosophizing. Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Prokhovnik, R. (2004). Spinoza and Republicanism. Palgrave Macmillan.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosenthal, M. A. (2021). Spinoza’s ‘republican idea of freedom.’ In Melamed, Y. (ed.), A Companion to Spinoza (pp. 402–09). Wiley-Blackwell.Google Scholar
Steinberg, J. (2009). Spinoza on civil liberation. Journal of the History of Philosophy, 47(1), 35–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

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