ABSTRACT
The condition of control stipulates that autonomous persons have the power to determine how they shall live. What kind of freedom does this call for? Does autonomy demand freedom to do otherwise, an issue of concern to philosophers who regard autonomous agency as central to responsible agency? If the presence of alternate possibilities is crucial to the living of an autonomous life, is autonomy possible if causal determinism is true? This chapter will begin by addressing the question of whether personal autonomy is a phenomenon that depends upon the resolution of our metaphysical status relative to the truth or falsity of determinism. Next, we will investigate the differences between autonomy and liberties of a negative and a positive variety. We will also take up the question of whether autonomy is guaranteed by the satisfaction of positive and negative liberty. In the third section we will look at the concept of self-creation. If autonomy requires the freedom to create oneself, what does this involve?
