Freedom is absolute and limited - A reconstruction of Sartre's theory of freedom

Abstract

Sartrea??s idea of freedom is encapsulated in his declaration in Being and Nothingness that a??freedom is absolute and limiteda??. Critics who are antagonistic towards Sartre accuse him of being inconsistent. To these proponents of the Inconsistency Objection, Sartre cannot claim that freedom is both absolute (absolute freedom suggests omnipotence) and limited (freedom must be situated). Putting these two antithetical strands in the statement together makes Sartre inconsistent.Other critics explain that Sartre is not inconsistent as he is referring to two types of freedom. To them, a??(ontological) freedom is absolute and (practical freedom is) limiteda??. These two interpretations of Sartrea??s Theory of Freedom are not satisfactory as in the case of the former, it is an inaccurate interpretation of Sartrea??s view. The latter ignores the relationship between the two types of freedom.This thesis argues that a??freedom (both ontological and practical) is (both) absolute (ontologically) and limited (practically)a??.