In Defence of Autonomy: An Ethic of Care

Abstract

Autonomy is often critiqued as a concept of individual egoism, and an ethic of care posed in contrast. This article defends autonomy against that critique. Unconditional autonomy, as a capacity of the will, necessarily entails obligations. It will be seen that autonomy is a norm of civility, and indeed, an ethic of care. The analysis relies on the development of Kantian concepts, and the modern day concept of autonomy of expression which relies upon those concepts. The convergence between the two concepts is justified, in response to analytic arguments against making that link. The obligations that autonomy entails under the Kantian view apply to the modern concept as well. Both require care.

Keywords: autonomy, care, ethics, Kant, expression

JEL Classification: B30, B31, K00, K19