Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Introduction and methods of interpretation
- Chapter 1 The idea of the juridical state and the postulate of public law
- Chapter 2 The state of nature and the three leges
- Appendix to Chapter 2 Iustitia tutatrix, iustitia commutativa, and iustitia distributiva and their differences
- Chapter 3 The right to freedom
- Chapter 4 The permissive law in the Doctrine of Right
- Chapter 5 The external mine and thine
- Chapter 6 Intelligible possession of land
- Chapter 7 The “state in the idea”
- Chapter 8 The state in reality
- Chapter 9 International and cosmopolitan law
- Chapter 10 The “idea of public law” and its limits
- Chapter 11 Contract law I. Why must I keep my promise?
- Chapter 12 Contract law II. Kant's table of contracts
- Chapter 13 Criminal punishment
- Chapter 14 The human being as a person
- Appendix I to Chapter 14 On the logic of “‘ought’ implies ‘can’”
- Appendix II to Chapter 14 The system of rules of imputation
- Bibliography
- Index
Chapter 5 - The external mine and thine
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Introduction and methods of interpretation
- Chapter 1 The idea of the juridical state and the postulate of public law
- Chapter 2 The state of nature and the three leges
- Appendix to Chapter 2 Iustitia tutatrix, iustitia commutativa, and iustitia distributiva and their differences
- Chapter 3 The right to freedom
- Chapter 4 The permissive law in the Doctrine of Right
- Chapter 5 The external mine and thine
- Chapter 6 Intelligible possession of land
- Chapter 7 The “state in the idea”
- Chapter 8 The state in reality
- Chapter 9 International and cosmopolitan law
- Chapter 10 The “idea of public law” and its limits
- Chapter 11 Contract law I. Why must I keep my promise?
- Chapter 12 Contract law II. Kant's table of contracts
- Chapter 13 Criminal punishment
- Chapter 14 The human being as a person
- Appendix I to Chapter 14 On the logic of “‘ought’ implies ‘can’”
- Appendix II to Chapter 14 The system of rules of imputation
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The permissive law we discussed in Chapter 4 extends my external freedom to include not only freedom from someone else's necessitating choice but also freedom to have external objects of choice as my own. In this chapter we continue with Kant's ideas on the external mine and thine, showing Kant's development of the idea of possession from physical or empirical possession to intelligible possession of external objects of choice. Kant begins by distinguishing four concepts of possession, which we discuss in section 1. In section 2, we turn to Kant's question of how possession as mine is possible. Section 3 focuses on possession of external things, as opposed to possession of objects of choice in general. In particular, section 3 discusses Kant's question of how a right in rem, or an ownership right, as opposed to a right in personam, or a right against a specific person, such as under a contract, is possible.
Kant's concepts of possession
Kant states that the subjective condition of the possibility to use an external object of choice is possession. In order to use something I must possess it. Kant continues by distinguishing four different meanings of possession. Possession can be (1) holding a thing in my hand or otherwise physically occupying it. He calls this possession “empirical possession.” Possession can also be (2) having something under my control, such as by locking the doors and windows to my house when I leave it.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Kant's Doctrine of RightA Commentary, pp. 107 - 121Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2010