Timothy Snyder's "On Freedom"
  • Jake Tarragon
    346
    Has anyone else read this?

    in a nutshell he proposes a "fifth dimension" of virtues, but no single virtue holds sway, and a "free" person must navigate between virtues in their lifteime, sometimes emphasising one or other and deprioritising others.

    An example he uses more than once is truth vs loyalty. But I guess any pair could be requistioned as an example. I found the book compellingly persuasive in a political/historical context as a nice kind person, but less so in a philosophical context. For example, there is no discussion of the list of "virtues".
    Jake Tarragon Options
  • Jake Tarragon
    346
    Nobody read it then?
    Jake Tarragon Options
  • Joshs
    6.4k
    ↪Jake Tarragon
    Nobody read it then? — Jake Tarragon

    I’m guessing people are probably more interested in his book ‘On Tyranny’ right now.
    Joshs Options
  • javi2541997
    6.6k
    ↪Jake Tarragon
    I only read literature, but thanks for the input anyway. I believe there are some folks here who actually read it, but they are busy with other stuff, or they are just shy to share their thoughts. We never know what is going through the reader's mind! :wink:
    javi2541997 Options
  • Jake Tarragon
    346
    I think Snyder's idea of a "fifth dimension" of "virtues" is intriguing, especially with respect to the definition of a "free" person as somebody who is able to steer some sort of course between virtues, without allowing any single one to dominate.

    Obvioulsy the notion of a "virtue" is troubling. For the sake of argument, suppose hatred is a "virtue". Then, as per Snyder's definition of freedom, I could be allowed to hate, albeit temporarily. Which sounds like a reasonble thing for a "free" person to do. It could even be progressive - for example a hatred of a dictator leading to action agains his or her downfall.

    Perhaps it would be more appropriate to claim that a "free" person must navigatge between "stances" , rather than "virtues" in their lifetime?
    Jake Tarragon Options
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