ABSTRACT
Self-determination and security are two of the most potent and contested concepts in modern social and political thought. Their potency – to which the frequent references elsewhere in this book to the political thought of Thomas Hobbes and Immanuel Kant bear witness – stems ultimately from their association with two of the deepest taproots in the human psyche: fear and desire, in particular fear of danger and desire for freedom. The contest arises because these are not terms that can be given a positive or unambiguous definition. For the same reason, the relationship between them will shift, depending on how they are perceived and analysed.
