Personal Autonomy New Essays on Personal Autonomy and Its Role in Contemporary Moral Philosophy Autonomy has recently become one of the central concepts in contemporary moral philosophy and has generated much debate over its nature and value This is the first volume to bring together original essays that address the theoretical foundations of the concept of autonomy, as well as essays that investigate the relationship between autonomy and moral responsibility, freedom, political philosophy, and medical ethics Written by some of the most prominent philosophers working in these areas today, this book represents cutting-edge research on the nature and value of autonomy that will be essential reading for a broad range of philosophers as well as many psychologists James Stacey Taylor is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Louisiana State University Personal Autonomy New Essays on Personal Autonomy and Its Role in Contemporary Moral Philosophy Edited by JAMES STACEY TAYLOR Louisiana State University    Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge  , UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521837965 © James Stacey Taylor 2005 This book is in copyright Subject to statutory exception and to the provision of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press First published in print format 2005 - - ---- eBook (MyiLibrary) --- eBook (MyiLibrary) - - ---- hardback --- hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of s for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate Contents List of Contributors Acknowledgments page vii ix Introduction James Stacey Taylor part i theoretical approaches to personal autonomy Planning Agency, Autonomous Agency Michael E Bratman Autonomy without Free Will Bernard Berofsky 33 58 Autonomy and the Paradox of Self-Creation: Infinite Regresses, Finite Selves, and the Limits of Authenticity Robert Noggle Agnostic Autonomism Revisited Alfred R Mele Feminist Intuitions and the Normative Substance of Autonomy Paul Benson Autonomy and Personal Integration Laura Waddell Ekstrom Responsibility, Applied Ethics, and Complex Autonomy Theories Nomy Arpaly v 87 109 124 143 162 vi Contents part ii autonomy, freedom, and moral responsibility Autonomy and Free Agency 183 Marina A L Oshana The Relationship between Autonomous and Morally Responsible Agency Michael McKenna 10 Alternative Possibilities, Personal Autonomy, and Moral Responsibility Ishtiyaque Haji 11 Freedom within Reason Susan Wolf part iii the expanding role of personal autonomy 12 Procedural Autonomy and Liberal Legitimacy John Christman 13 The Concept of Autonomy in Bioethics: An Unwarranted Fall from Grace Thomas May 14 Who Deserves Autonomy, and Whose Autonomy Deserves Respect? Tom L Beauchamp 205 235 258 277 299 310 15 Autonomy, Diminished Life, and the Threshold for Use R G Frey 330 Index 347 Contributors Nomy Arpaly is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Brown University Tom L Beauchamp is Professor of Philosophy at Georgetown University Paul Benson is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Dayton Bernard Berofsky is Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University Michael E Bratman is the Durfee Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences and Professor of Philosophy at Stanford University John Christman is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Political Science at Pennsylvania State University Laura Waddell Ekstrom is the Robert F and Sara M Boyd Associate Professor of Philosophy at the College of William and Mary R G Frey is Professor of Philosophy at Bowling Green State University Ishtiyaque Haji is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Calgary Thomas May is Associate Professor of Bioethics at the Medical College of Wisconsin Michael McKenna is Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Ithaca College Alfred R Mele is the William H and Lucyle T Werkmeister Professor of Philosophy at Florida State University Robert Noggle is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Central Michigan University vii viii Contributors Marina A L Oshana is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Florida James Stacey Taylor is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Louisiana State University Susan Wolf is the Edna J Koury Professor of Philosophy at the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill Acknowledgments As a glance at the list of contributors will show, I am the only unknown here; the others are among the most prominent writers on autonomy, moral responsibility, and applied ethics working today My primary debt, then, is to those who have contributed chapters to this volume, all of whom have not only been extremely generous with their time in helping me to prepare this volume, but also the most agreeable contributors a fledgling editor could hope to work with I also thank Terence Moore (of Cambridge University Press) and R G Frey (my Ph.D supervisor) for all of their advice and encouragement during this project and Russell Hahn and Stephen Calvert for their editorial advice and assistance Finally, I thank my wife, Margaret Ulizio, for her support during this project’s progress ix .. .Personal Autonomy New Essays on Personal Autonomy and Its Role in Contemporary Moral Philosophy Autonomy has recently become one of the central concepts in contemporary moral philosophy and. .. of Philosophy at Louisiana State University Personal Autonomy New Essays on Personal Autonomy and Its Role in Contemporary Moral Philosophy Edited by JAMES STACEY TAYLOR Louisiana State University. .. collection, Autonomy, Freedom, and Moral Responsibility.” Finally, the last section of this Introduction will indicate the various ways in which the concept of autonomy is invoked within areas of contemporary