On Freedom From Domination: A Third Dimension Of Individual Liberty

Individual freedom is one of the core concepts in political philosophy, and has long been discussed. Isaiah Berlin's distinction between positive freedom and negative freedom does not end the hot debate. Rather, it tends to drive it into more depth. At the same time, it has also seemed to limit the issue in a relatively narrow sphere. The risk of totalitarianism brought by the misuse of concept of positive freedom has been pointed out by Berlin, while, the danger coming along with the concept of negative freedom seems to be more threatening in the context of modernity crisis if we just simply concentrate on the development of individual rights in the private domain and ignore the concern of the public good. Between these two concepts of freedom, Offering a possible way to end the impasse, Phillip Pettit adds a third dimension of the concept of freedom, a freedom from domination, which forms the thesis of this author's argument. This freedom from domination demands not only non-interference which is held dear by negative freedom, but also aims at bringing individual freedom and public participation together; by so doing, it links the private and the public spheres and individual rights, adheres pluralism without endorsing monism, which, according to Berlin, is one of the main negative consequences of positive freedom. In short, freedom from domination values individual rights but attempts to combat their potential political sluggishness; it pursues the rule of law, but leaves space for political action towards the public good.