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Head, JM (2019) Anne Conway and Henry More on Freedom. International Journal of Philosophical Studies. ISSN 0967-2559
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Freedom ijps paper keele version.docx - Accepted Version
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Abstract
This paper seeks to shed light on the often-overlooked account of divine and human freedom presented by Anne Conway in her Principles of the Most Ancient Modern Philosophy (1690), partly through a comparison with the theory of freedom offered by her philosophical mentor, Henry More. After outlining More’s theory of freedom, explored in a number of different works, I argue that, given evidence from correspondence regarding Conway’s familiarity with More’s work, and the timing of the writing of the notes that would be compiled in the Principles, it is highly likely that she has his account of freedom in mind when she offers her own theory of divine and human freedom. Further, I argue that whilst they both agree in attributing substantive freedom to both God and human beings, the Principles crucially departs from More’s philosophy in refraining from limiting freedom to human beings alone but extending it to all creatures. However, I argue that the question of whether Conway follows More in allowing for the possibility of human beings to develop morally to the extent that they attain a good nature and no longer have indifference of the will in a strict sense is unclear.
Item Type: | Article |
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Additional Information: | This is the accepted author manuscript (AAM). The final published version (version of record) is available online via Taylor & Francis at https://www.tandfonlinhttps://doi.org/10.1080/09672559.2019.1659843 - please refer to any applicable terms of use of the publisher. |
Uncontrolled Keywords: | Anne Conway, Henry More, freedom, God |
Subjects: | B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > B Philosophy (General) |
Divisions: | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Social, Political and Global Studies |
Depositing User: | Symplectic |
Date Deposited: | 20 Aug 2019 10:26 |
Last Modified: | 10 Mar 2021 01:30 |
URI: | https://eprints.keele.ac.uk/id/eprint/6712 |