This is a paper about the problem of freedom after Kant. In Kant, this problem occurs for the most part in two distinct ways. In his theory of morality, with respect to the freedom of the subject to choose and to act autonomously, hence selflessly, according to the principles of reason; second, in life in the city through a theory of the political context that will lead to freedom. Several hundred years after Kant, the idea of moral freedom, as he understands it, has lost its edge. Yet the idea of political freedom is, I believe, still as central now as in Kant’s time. This paper will examine Kant’s idea of political freedom, mainly through his view of what he calls perpetual peace. I will argue that the problem has lost none of its urgency but that his proposed solution no longer seems interesting. I will further suggest that in an age of economic globalization even the problem itself has basically changed in a way that calls not for a better form of the Kantian approach but for another, different way to analyze this theme.
I will begin with a few comments on Kant’s moral theory and then turn to his view of perpetual peace as his central view of political freedom. I will be suggesting that his theory is basically unclear. It is not clear if he favors a federalist or a non-federalist approach, each of which has its difficulties, or some combination of both. I will further point to several difficulties in Kant’s approach. First, there is the very idea of a transcendental analysis. A second, related theme is Kant’s assumption that there is a single solution good for all times and places. Lastly, there is the change in society in our increasingly globalized world, which implies that a solution that fails to consider the economic dimension of the modern world would itself be part of the problem.
On the Kantian approach to morality
Kant is an outstanding example of a philosopher committed to treating all philosophical themes on the a priori plane; that is, prior to and independent of experience, hence without regard either to the prevailing situation or to later changes. Kant’s influence has remained strong over the centuries but its appeal differs according to the domain. His approach arguably still remains up to date in epistemology, which is still largely focused on Kantian themes discussed in terms of Kantian distinctions and often in Kantian vocabulary. This is less clear in the practical realms as concerns questions of morality and related themes.
Kant believes he has forever resolved questions of what one ought to do. However, one is struck by the lack of interest in Kant’s wake in an a priori strategy for morality or even by a moral strategy at all. In Kant’s wake, the discussion about what one ought to do has fragmented into an increasing number of disparate approaches that often reflect different conceptions of what the realm of morality encompasses and different conceptions of its relation to the world in which we live.