Hegel's Idea of Freedom [Paperback]

This book offers the first full-length treatment in English of Hegel's idea of freedom - his theory of what it is to be free and his account of the social and political contexts in which this freedom is developed, realized, and sustained. Freedom is the value that Hegel most greatly admired and the central organizing concept of his social philosophy.

1. Introduction: Perspectives on Hegel's Idea of Freedom
2. Freedom as Rational Self-Determination
3. The Reciprocity Thesis in Kant and Hegel
4. Hegel and Social Contract Theory
5. Hegel's Justification of Private Property
6. A Civic Humanist Idea of Freedom
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index

Alan Patten'sHegel's Idea of Freedomis an impressive intellectual achievement . . . Written in vivid but jargon-free prose,Hegel's Idea of Freedomoffers a philosophically rigorous account of the central place of the concept of freedom in Hegel's political theory . . . Without overstating his claims, Patten provocatively suggests that Hegel still speaks to contemporary political theory in a host of interesting ways. Patten's book not only revisits Hegel's ideas about many traditional issues in political theory . . . . . . but it also offers an excellent critical discussion of major attempts within recent philosophy . . . to rely on Hegel for contemporary purposes. By emphasizing a side of Hegel's political philosophy often neglected by both sympathizers and detractors, Patten also makes an important contribution towards revising standard accounts of Hegel's place within the history of modern political thought.--William Scheuerman, University of Minnesota

Alan Patten is Assistant Professor of Political Science at McGill University, Montreal. He was previously Lecturer in Politics at the University of Exeter.