Relational autonomy and paternalistic interventions

Res Publica 15 (4):321-336 (2009)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

Relational conceptions of autonomy attempt to take into account the social aspects of autonomous agency. Those views that incorporate not merely causally, but constitutively necessary relational conditions, incorporate a condition that has the form: A necessary condition for autonomous agency is that the agent stands in social relations S. I argue that any account that incorporates such a condition cannot play one of autonomy’s key normative roles: identifying those agents who ought to be protected from paternalistic intervention. I argue, against objections from Oshana, that there are good reasons for maintaining the notion of autonomy in this role, and thus that such relational conceptions should not be accepted. This rejection goes beyond that from John Christman, which holds only for those relational conditions which are value-laden.

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 90,221

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Analytics

Added to PP
2009-07-13

Downloads
222 (#82,503)

6 months
17 (#106,753)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Jules Holroyd
University of Sheffield

Citations of this work

Feminist Perspectives on Autonomy.Natalie Stoljar - forthcoming - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Relational Autonomy, Paternalism, and Maternalism.Laura Specker Sullivan & Fay Niker - 2018 - Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 21 (3):649-667.
A relational account of intellectual autonomy.Benjamin Elzinga - 2019 - Canadian Journal of Philosophy 49 (1):22-47.

View all 15 citations / Add more citations

References found in this work

Unprincipled virtue: an inquiry into moral agency.Nomy Arpaly - 2003 - New York: Oxford University Press.
Well-being: its meaning, measurement, and moral importance.James Griffin - 1986 - Oxford [Oxfordshire]: Clarendon Press.
Paternalism.Gerald Dworkin - 1972 - The Monist 56 (1):64-84.
Autonomy, gender, politics.Marilyn Friedman - 2003 - New York: Oxford University Press.

View all 29 references / Add more references