Hegels Concept of Freedom in the Modern State - Essay Example

Hegel’s concept of freedom in modern Introduction: Hegel’s theory of freedom is explained in Philosophy of Right, Hegel’s major political work. As argued by Hegelian philosophy, the notion of state is embodied in the aspect of the universal spirit appeared in the form of “human consciousness and extended in interpersonal space.” (Hampsher-Monk, 1992, p. 427) Hegel’s philosophy of freedom summarises the relationship between the state and freedom, and more specifically, the actualisation of freedom. This paper briefly addresses the Hegelian philosophy of political thoughts including the ideas of freedom, state, duties and rights. It also attempts to look carefully into the various prospects of the concept of freedom relevant for a modern state as well as the modern individual, and tries to find out if today’s individuals are contented with what Hegel provides in his explanation of freedom in the context of the modern state. Freedom in modern state: Hegel’s view of freedom is closely associated with the broader prospects of human life. According to Hegel, human life is characterised by freedom, liberty and rights. In this context, freedom and rights are entailed by a sense of responsibility that provides the community a stable context in which morality and creativity can be expressed freely. Further, this sense of responsibility acknowledges the needs (not wants) of the people within a society. This responsibility is assigned to the state. If the needs of the people are not acknowledged by the state, it simply indicates that the freedom of these people is constrained. This is the fundamental cause of revolutions occurred in societies. Hegel in Section 258 in the Preface of Philosophy of Right mentions that it is the state in which “freedom attains its highest right…[It] has the highest right over the individual, whose highest duty in turn is to be a member of the state.” (Wood, 1991) Thus, the contexts of duties and rights are very essential to understand the concept of freedom in a state. While relating freedom of individuals with the duties of the state, Hegel states that it is the responsibility of the state to secure and protect property and personal freedom of individuals who are members of it. With its caprice, accident and myriad realities, the state can be conceived as “the ethical whole and the actualisation of freedom.” (Wood, 1991) Hegel further simplifies the concept of freedom by stating that the state embodies freedom of individuals by recognising and developing their personal individuality as well as particular interests. This individuality takes considerable account of the interests of the universal as well, because the state includes the universal element by representing collective union of individuals. Therefore, it can be argued that universality and individuality are two most important ingredients of the concept of a state. In this context, Hegel states that the modern state is enormously strong enough to preserve both particularity and universal unity in the principle of the state. Let us now explore the concept of the modern state with some more details. Hegelian philosophy of politics argues that the modern state ensures that welfare of individuals is adequately emphasised. While aiming to achieve this individual particularity, the modern state also takes good care of universal interests including those of the family and civic community. So an articulate and truly organised modern state will be the one that practises the development and enhancement of the universal and subjectivity. This is what appropriately describes the true meaning of freedom in a modern state. In order to justify the union of the universal and the particular interests of individuals, the modern state talks about duties and rights of the people obligated to it. The state vs. the consciousness of freedom: ‘The state’ as denoted by Hegel in Philosophy of Right is conceptualised as an ethical community that is politically organised and sovereign, and it is subject to a supreme public authority which is elected by the individual will of the people obligated to it. The independent nation or the modern state is a political community with certain ethical ideals shared collectively by its members. The system acknowledges and prescribes the duties, roles and functions of that community. In other words, the state imposes laws, customs, and other duties on citizens with a view to provide them with what they want. At the same time, the citizens consider the duties as valid only when their conscience, will and reason give consent to them. The consciousness of freedom provides citizens their required rights, as authorised by the state. In fact, this consciousness of freedom plays a crucial role in modern states in terms of advocating for essential human rights. In a modern state, individual rights are formalised legally for the collective benefit of the political community of it; these rights are termed by Hegel as ‘abstract freedom of the individual’ (Plant, 1983). Duties and rights: The concept of freedom comprises the duties and rights availed by the citizens of a state by means of the implementation of rational law and order. Here, the denotations of duty and right are correlative and complimentary of one another. Duty refers to universal reality while right indicates particular or individual freedom. Thus, the two conceptions represent the substantive and the particular respectively. Further, it can be argued that as the modern state embodies both concepts, it also brings to light the fact that an individual’s obligation to substantive reality is the realisation of his or her particular freedom. In other words, freedom is embodied in our duties toward the state of our citizenship. Hegel makes a clear statement that the amalgamation of duty and right is one of the most important features of states. Hegel shows the connection between the two in terms of modern states that constitutionally impose certain duties on the citizens whereas the citizens, in return, realise their own interests in the execution in some way or the other. In short, the universal concern of the state becomes his or her own personal concern. The notion of free individuals: The concept of modern state arises from the very assumption of ‘free individuals’, a term referring to the importance and emphasis on personal freedom and choice. It is notable that the foundation of the Hegelian theory of freedom is based on his concept of the will. When it comes to establishing legitimacy in modern world, individual will is given primary significance. In a modern state, members enjoy their individual will in terms of the duties and rights legitimised by the state. This means citizens can have the freedom of availing what their will is. So the citizens of a modern state are free individuals enjoying the fundamental rights of expressing their individual will, interests and opinions. The conception of freedom of an individual is closely associated to the individual will he has, and this is realised through conceptualising the Self by means of a rationalistic approach. In this sense, rationality, will and freedom are correlated. Self-consciousness of human beings is the determining factor of individual will, which is manifested later in terms of the duties and rights of the citizens implemented by the state they are obligated to. This entire process is rational; rationality being the essential characteristic of the human mind, the political community determines their collective interests and individual will. So the free individuals are rationalistic in their thoughts, actions and decisions. Rationality and Hegel: One of the fundamental aspects of the political philosophy of Hegelianism argues that the rational is actual. This can be explained in simple terms that all actuality is capable of being expressed in rational categories. The modern state adopts rational or logical approach to recognise the collective individual will of its members in order to implement normative order (for instance, law or right) for their benefit. The outcome of a rationalistic approach will then lead the state towards the development of complete freedom. We can also state that the creation of individual will is manifested by the human rights propagated by the state, which are legitimated by its legal system. So in a way, individual will as recognised by the modern state is rational. It is also the manifestation of individual freedom, and it is actual. Therefore, it can be argued that the modern state rationalises or actualises individual freedom. Conclusion: Hegel provides a comprehensive approach of describing the actualisation of freedom in the Preface of Philosophy of Right. In the process of explaining the relationship between the state and the concept of freedom, Hegel elaborates a number of notions and ideas including the notion of freedom, duties, rights, rationality, etc. What is characteristic of the modern world is the emphasis on individual will and individual freedom. In terms of modern states, Hegel’s theory of freedom provides an acceptable ground to realise and recognise individual will and individual freedom by the legal, social, economic and political systems. To conclude, in the words of Knowles, “The state is a structure of freedom…the rational modern state…is the actuality of concrete freedom.” (Knowles, 2002, p. 304-305) References 1. Hampsher-Monk, I., 1992. A History of Modern Political Thought. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. 1. Knowles, D., 2002. Hegel and the Philosophy of Right. London: Routledge. 1. Plant, R., 1983. Hegel: An Introduction. 2nd edition. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. 1. Taylor, C., 1979. Hegel and Modern Society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1. Wood, A. W. ed., 1991. Elements of the Philosophy of Right. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Read More