Freedom and authenticity in the good life: VCE Philosophy
“Viewpoints and arguments on freedom and authenticity as they bear on the good life”
De Beauvoir argues that humans are free, and that value comes into the world through free choice, so we must will our own freedom and, because we are bound up with others, the freedom of others too. Evading freedom (as the 'serious' person does by treating values as fixed and given) is a failure. Nietzsche attacks the herd instinct of obedience and the common morality built on it, and praises people who create their own values. Mill argues in On Liberty that society should not interfere with a person's conduct except to prevent harm to others, which protects the space in which individuality develops. The main objections are that freedom and authenticity are not enough for goodness, and that they may be unrealistic or selfish.
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What this dot point is asking
To what extent must a good life be free and authentic? You need to explain what each author means by freedom and authenticity, and ask whether living by your own values is necessary or sufficient for living well.
De Beauvoir: freedom and ambiguity
In The Ethics of Ambiguity, de Beauvoir works within existentialism. The core claims in the set extracts:
- Humans are ambiguous: both free subjects and finite, bodily beings who are also objects in the world, and who die.
- There is no external source of values that excuses us. Values arise from human freedom.
- Many people flee this by hiding in rules, roles or authorities, treating values as ready made. She calls this a form of unfreedom, since one refuses to take responsibility.
- Genuine freedom involves willing oneself free, and so willing others free too. My freedom needs a world of other free people to have meaning, so oppression of others undermines the possibility of my own free action.
Argument: if our freedom is the source of all value, then to deny freedom to anyone is to deny the source of value, so a good life must respect and promote freedom generally. Authenticity here means facing ambiguity honestly and owning your choices.
Nietzsche: herd morality and self-creation
In the selected sections of Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche criticises the 'herd instinct of obedience', the tendency to conform and to treat the ordinary morality of the group as universal. He distinguishes types of morality: one of nobles who create their own values out of strength, and one of the weak who value what protects them, such as pity and equality. He argues the good life for exceptional individuals requires independence, discipline and willingness to endure suffering, not comfort and conformity. Authenticity is therefore self-creation, though not unrestrained: it demands rank-ordering of drives and stern self-mastery.
Mill: liberty and individuality
In the opening extract of On Liberty, Mill states his principle: the only purpose for which power can rightly be exercised over a member of a community, against their will, is to prevent harm to others. A person's own good, physical or moral, is not enough reason to coerce them. The extract concerns the nature of the liberty protected; the broader work argues that individuality and variety of ways of living are conditions of human progress. For the good life, this means that being free to choose your own plan of life is part of what makes a life one's own.
How the three compare
- All three think a life lived on someone else's terms is deficient.
- De Beauvoir ties freedom to concern for others' freedom, whereas Nietzsche emphasises rank and difference.
- Mill's concern is the limit of social interference rather than metaphysical freedom, so he gives a political protection for the conditions of authenticity.
Objections
- Freedom is not sufficient. A person can freely choose a worthless or cruel life. Authentic evil is still evil.
- Not necessary? Someone raised in a tradition and content within it may flourish without ever choosing it. Defenders reply that continuing to endorse it on reflection is itself a form of authenticity.
- Nietzsche can be accused of elitism and of treating compassion as weakness, which many find implausible.
- De Beauvoir's move from my freedom to everyone's freedom may not be valid: why must I will the freedom of others? Her answer relies on the claim that freedom needs others to be effective.
- Mill's harm principle is hard to apply, since the line between self-regarding and other-regarding conduct is blurry.
Question: Is an authentic life a good life?
Define authenticity: acting from values that are genuinely one's own, after honest reflection.
For: a person who lives by others' expectations, never examining them, seems to miss the point of having a life; de Beauvoir calls such evasion a flight from freedom.
Against: authenticity alone says nothing about content. A person might authentically commit to cruelty.
Judgement: authenticity is a necessary condition for a good life in the sense that a good life must be lived, not merely undergone, but it is not sufficient. A good life also needs the right sort of values, which is why de Beauvoir ties freedom to others and Mill to the avoidance of harm.
Practice questions
What does de Beauvoir mean by saying we must will ourselves free?
Model answer: She means that freedom is not just a fact about us that we can ignore. We have to take it up, accept responsibility for our choices and not hide behind given values. She also argues that willing my own freedom commits me to willing the freedom of others.
Give one objection to Nietzsche's criticism of herd morality.
Model answer: He seems to assume that independent individuals should be admired over those who follow shared norms. But shared norms like honesty and kindness are what make cooperation and trust possible, so rejecting them risks undermining the conditions of a good life for everyone, including the strong.
Do not equate freedom with doing whatever you want. For de Beauvoir freedom is tied to responsibility and to others' freedom, and for Nietzsche it comes with demanding discipline.