Two Ideas of Freedom

  George Wiegel has written an excellent article called Two ideas of freedom. He discusses two ideas of freedom: freedom for” and “freedom from”. ‘Freedom from’ is freedom from interference in personal affairs, for example the state being excessively nosy in one’s individual rights. “Freedom For (or to)” to is to realize the greater good that is obvious in society and the freedom to act, speak and express oneself. The source was the thoughts of Isaiah Berlin’s talk: two concepts of liberty in 1958 at Oxford. Liberal political communities according to the article are supposed to give people the freedom to go about their daily business provided they do not impinge the freedom of others. Many states nowadays have restrictions on religious conscience, and many rights that have been recognized by international documents and agreements. States that compromise many freedoms end up restricting their inhabitants and suffocating intellectual development and the expanse of ideas. 

Wiegel then goes on to mention two famous monks who had different concepts of freedom: Aquinas and Ockham. Aquinas believed in “Freedom for excellence,” that is freedom for happiness and the fulfilment of life. Freedom is the friend of wisdom and the development of humanity. It is a great organizing principle of moral life, and it unifies us towards God and the greater good.

William of Ockham believed that freedom was what has been called “The freedom of indifference.” This is more about choice and self assertion than reality. The will is seen as very important. Ockham believed in a radically autonomous view in philosophy called nominalism. This view states freedom has no religious nature and is purely wilfulness. In other words freedom has nothing to do with goodness or morality.

Freedom according to Wiegel is to help the deepest yearnings of the human heart to be free. He believes in the principle of self control and the idea that freedom can help society be ordered towards the good. Freedom helps to order society towards the common good. Wiegel talks about many bioethical issues that are debated today, showing how the idea of good has been reduced by relativism.

Freedom is a word happily dispensed with by many people these days. Yet a closer understanding and consideration of its real meaning and importance needs to be clarified. It is more than being just free from constraints and unpleasant situations. It is more than being free from control or interference.

Being at school is a place where such a concept as freedom might be discussed. The amount of freedom given to students and the understanding of such a concept would no doubt influence the mentality of the school. On one hand, should the school rules create a strict working regime or should they reflect libertarian laissez faire environment? Does freedom in schools encourage productivity and enthusiasm or is it a licence for misbehaviour? Laws are designed to protect people from wrong actions and are designed to encourage people towards the good. An authentic sense of freedom can be discovered in schools if people let children take responsibility but at the same time do not forget a correct instilling of values and punishment for those who break the rules.

A method of working with young people that would affirm freedom would be to have an open forum to let anyone have their own views and contributions towards a project. Due to the fact that we have freedom of speech in most western nations, people are able to say what they want. The internet has created a culture where ideas are expressed clearly and freely without any chance of impartiality from original views. As an easy form of communication it is excellent for getting people together to form ideas and liaise.

Within this open forum, any violent or abusive conduct or any behaviour that is against the law would be prohibited. This is because it would only lead to negativity and a hostile environment. Despite having an open forum, certain laws have to be placed down in order to respect the forum and maintenance of the forum. These ideas would help the freedom of the person by helping development of personality, ethics and potential.