From the emancipatory to the relational aspect of freedom in the political community

A dialogue between Michel Foucault and Robert Spaemann

Authors

  • Viviana González Hincapié Universidad Complutense de Madrid

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18042/cepc/rep.200.05

Abstract

The discussion on the different concepts of freedom remains a central topic of interest for Political Theory. The implications derived from these concepts are highly relevant to the conception of the person and the configuration of communal life. Starting from an analysis of the concept of freedom raised by Foucault in his well-known essay The Subject and Power, this article explores the implications of an emancipatory consideration of freedom, such as the one that would be present in some of the works of the French thinker in terms of resistance and liberation. It also examines the relational consideration of the person proposed by the contemporary German philosopher Robert Spaemann, in order to raise a discussion with the Foucauldian conception of freedom and its implications for the political community, in dialogue with the Aristotelian tradition. The conclusions highlight that a fully human freedom cannot be defined exclusively in terms of the negative aspect of emancipation, but that it includes the affirmative aspect of recognition of the other as a good in itself, which, as the distinctive content of the love of friendship, should be present in the foundations of the political community.

Published

2023-07-06

Issue

Section

ARTICLES