Autonomy as Non‐alienation, Autonomy as Sovereignty, and Politics

An autonomous life is, other things being equal, a better life, or so I here assume, together with many, many others. That is, a life which is shaped, to a considerable extent, by the values and choices of the person whose life it is is, other things being equal, for this reason better than a life that lacks such self-directedness. This ideal - metaphorically, the ideal of being a part-author of one's life-story, rather than merely the passive protagonist in it - is powerful and important, both ethically and (in particular) politically. It is, of course, absolutely central to the liberal tradition, and it is one that even many contemporaries who do not think of themselves as liberal torch-bearers find hard to resist. And while acknowledging the value of autonomy does not by itself suffice for drawing far-reaching conclusions - questions of interpretation remain, of course, and other values may outweigh the value of autonomy on specific occasions and maybe even systematically-still, it's hard to imagine anything resembling an acceptable moral theory, and certainly an even just liberalish political philosophy, in which the value of autonomy does not play a star role.