Enter Page Title Here

measure.jpg (33565 byte)
Ian Carter, A Measure of Freedom, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999, pp. 310, hardback ISBN 0-19-829453-0, paperback ISBN 978-0-19-926749-1.

It is often said that one person or society is 'freer' than another, or that people have a right to equal freedom, or that freedom should be increased or even maximized. Such quantitative claims about freedom are of great importance to us, forming an essential part of our political discourse and theorizing. Yet their meaning has been surprisingly neglected by political philosophers until now.

Ian Carter provides the first systematic account of the nature and importance of our judgements about degrees of freedom. He begins with an analysis of the normative assumptions behind the claim that individuals are entitled to a measure of freedom, and then goes on to ask whether it is indeed conceptually possible to measure freedom. Adopting a coherentist approach, he argues for a conception of freedom that not only reflects commonly held intuitions about who is freer than whom but is also compatible with a liberal or freedom-based theory of justice.
View back cover
Purchase via OUP
View via Oxford Scholarship Online
Discussions
Bavetta, S., Olsaretti, S. e Ricciardi, M., "Freedom and its Dimensions. A Debate", Notizie di Politeia, n.56 (1999), pp. 107-27.

Braham, M., "Measuring Specific Freedom", Economics and Philosophy, 22 (3) (2006), pp. 317-33.

Carter, I and Kramer, M. H., "How Changes in One’s Preferences can Affect One’s Freedom (and How They Cannot). A Reply to Dowding and van Hees", Economics and Philosophy, 24 (2008), pp. 81-96.

D’Agata, A., "Measures of Freedom", Journal of Socio-Economics, 30 (2008).

de Bruin, B., "Liberal and Republican Freedom", Journal of Political Philosophy, forthcoming, 2009.

Dowding, K. e Hees, M. van, "Counterfactual Success and Negative Freedom", Economics and Philosophy, 23 (2007), pp. 141-62.

Dowding, K. e Hees, M. van, "Counterfactual Success Again: Response to Carter and Kramer", Economics and Philosophy, 2008.

Garnett, M., "Ignorance, Incompetence and the Concept of Liberty", Journal of Political Philosophy, 15 (4) (2007), pp. 428-46.

Hees, M. van, Legal Reductionism and Freedom (Dordrecht: Kluwer, 2000), chs. 7 and 8.

Hees, M. van, "Sulla misurazione della libertà empirica", Etica ed economia, 2 (2) (2000), pp. 41-57.

Hindriks, F., "The Freedom of Collective Agents", Journal of Political Philosophy, 16 (2) (2008), pp. 165-83.

Hunt, I., "Overall Freedom and Constraint", Inquiry, 44 (2001), pp. 131-48.

Hutchinson, P., "Steiner’s Possession. As it Were", European Journal of Political Theory, 3 (2004), pp. 245-265.

Kramer, M. H., The Quality of Freedom (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), pp. 157-69, 228-55, 358-473.

Morriss, P., "Power and Liberalism", in S. R. Clegg and M. Haugaard (eds), The SAGE Handbook of Power (London, Sage 2009).

Nickel, J., "Freedom’s Measure", in Law and Philosophy, 20 (2001), pp. 531-40.

Ottonelli, V., "Riflessioni sulla concezione ‘empirica’ della libertà", Teoria Politica, 17 (2001), pp. 137-52.

Pettit, P., "Republican Freedom: Three Axioms, Four Theorems", C. Laborde and J. Maynor (eds), Republicanism and Political Theory (Oxford: Blackwell 2008).

Skinner, Q., "Freedom as the Absence of Arbitrary Power", in C. Laborde and J. Maynor (eds), Republicanism and Political Theory (Oxford: Blackwell 2008).

Sugden, R. "Opportunity as a Space for Individuality: Its Value and the Impossibility of Measuring It", Ethics, 113 (2003), pp. 783-809.

Reviews

Thomas Hurka, in Times Literary Supplement, 3 Nov. 2000, p. 28.
Valeria Ottonelli, in Il Politico, 65 (2000), pp. 457-59 (in Italian).

Jurgen De Wispelaere, in Political Studies, 48 (2000), p. 831.

Daniel M. Hausman, in The Economic Journal, 111 (2001), pp. 137-39.

Mathias Risse, in Ethics, 114 (2004), pp. 340-343.

Armando Massarenti, Il Sole 24 Ore, 26 Sept. 1999 (in Italian - online).

Persio Tincani, Bollettino di Filosofia Politica (in Italian - online).

home Ian Carter's home page

			Ian Carter, A Measure of Freedom, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999, pp. 310, hardback ISBN 0-19-829453-0, paperback ISBN 978-0-19-926749-1. It is often said that one person or society is 'freer' than another, or that people have a right to equal freedom, or that freedom should be increased or even maximized. Such quantitative claims about freedom are of great importance to us, forming an essential part of our political discourse and theorizing. Yet their meaning has been surprisingly neglected by political philosophers until now. Ian Carter provides the first systematic account of the nature and importance of our judgements about degrees of freedom. He begins with an analysis of the normative assumptions behind the claim that individuals are entitled to a measure of freedom, and then goes on to ask whether it is indeed conceptually possible to measure freedom. Adopting a coherentist approach, he argues for a conception of freedom that not only reflects commonly held intuitions about who is freer than whom but is also compatible with a liberal or freedom-based theory of justice. View back cover Purchase via OUP View via Oxford Scholarship Online

			Discussions Bavetta, S., Olsaretti, S. e Ricciardi, M., "Freedom and its Dimensions. A Debate", Notizie di Politeia, n.56 (1999), pp. 107-27. Braham, M., "Measuring Specific Freedom", Economics and Philosophy, 22 (3) (2006), pp. 317-33. Carter, I and Kramer, M. H., "How Changes in One’s Preferences can Affect One’s Freedom (and How They Cannot). A Reply to Dowding and van Hees", Economics and Philosophy, 24 (2008), pp. 81-96. D’Agata, A., "Measures of Freedom", Journal of Socio-Economics, 30 (2008). de Bruin, B., "Liberal and Republican Freedom", Journal of Political Philosophy, forthcoming, 2009. Dowding, K. e Hees, M. van, "Counterfactual Success and Negative Freedom", Economics and Philosophy, 23 (2007), pp. 141-62. Dowding, K. e Hees, M. van, "Counterfactual Success Again: Response to Carter and Kramer", Economics and Philosophy, 2008. Garnett, M., "Ignorance, Incompetence and the Concept of Liberty", Journal of Political Philosophy, 15 (4) (2007), pp. 428-46. Hees, M. van, Legal Reductionism and Freedom (Dordrecht: Kluwer, 2000), chs. 7 and 8. Hees, M. van, "Sulla misurazione della libertà empirica", Etica ed economia, 2 (2) (2000), pp. 41-57. Hindriks, F., "The Freedom of Collective Agents", Journal of Political Philosophy, 16 (2) (2008), pp. 165-83. Hunt, I., "Overall Freedom and Constraint", Inquiry, 44 (2001), pp. 131-48. Hutchinson, P., "Steiner’s Possession. As it Were", European Journal of Political Theory, 3 (2004), pp. 245-265. Kramer, M. H., The Quality of Freedom (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), pp. 157-69, 228-55, 358-473. Morriss, P., "Power and Liberalism", in S. R. Clegg and M. Haugaard (eds), The SAGE Handbook of Power (London, Sage 2009). Nickel, J., "Freedom’s Measure", in Law and Philosophy, 20 (2001), pp. 531-40. Ottonelli, V., "Riflessioni sulla concezione ‘empirica’ della libertà", Teoria Politica, 17 (2001), pp. 137-52. Pettit, P., "Republican Freedom: Three Axioms, Four Theorems", C. Laborde and J. Maynor (eds), Republicanism and Political Theory (Oxford: Blackwell 2008). Skinner, Q., "Freedom as the Absence of Arbitrary Power", in C. Laborde and J. Maynor (eds), Republicanism and Political Theory (Oxford: Blackwell 2008). Sugden, R. "Opportunity as a Space for Individuality: Its Value and the Impossibility of Measuring It", Ethics, 113 (2003), pp. 783-809. Reviews Thomas Hurka, in Times Literary Supplement, 3 Nov. 2000, p. 28. Valeria Ottonelli, in Il Politico, 65 (2000), pp. 457-59 (in Italian). Jurgen De Wispelaere, in Political Studies, 48 (2000), p. 831. Daniel M. Hausman, in The Economic Journal, 111 (2001), pp. 137-39. Mathias Risse, in Ethics, 114 (2004), pp. 340-343. Armando Massarenti, Il Sole 24 Ore, 26 Sept. 1999 (in Italian - online). Persio Tincani, Bollettino di Filosofia Politica (in Italian - online).