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The article presents the results of the fi research on the problems of governing a state with the use of the methodology of complexity theory (cybernetic epistemology) The toolkit allowed the authors to conclude that the complex, dissipative system of the state, located at the bifurcation point, cannot be managed by traditional methods. The recursive nature of the state and economy development process defies linear-hierarchical governance, and requires serious fundamental work on the application of strange attractors mathematics for modeling and control.Cybernetic epistemology reveals an insurmountable contradiction between forming a governing subsystem on the partisan-and-backroom principle and tasks of socioeconomic systems management. A transition to a meritocratic recruitment system in all legislative and executive bodies can be the only solution to the problem.Scientific novelty of the presented research results lies in application of Gödel’s theorems of incompleteness to socio-economic processes analysis. Modern theory and practice are based on three main axioms: matter and energy; a cell; evolution, that F. Engels presented in “Dialectics of nature”, following L.A. Feuerbach. The axioms allowed to explain the socio-economic processes within the range from Homo Economicus to Homo Soveticus. To explain the transition from capitalitarian stage of evolution to the humanistic one it’s nec3ssary to introduce into scientific circulation a new axiom: autopoetic process of consciousness evolution. In other words, it is not only an object of control that changes, but consciousness of subjects of control changes as well. That was brilliantly foreseen by. K. Galbraith as early as in1967 in the work “New industrial society”. The integration of these and some other classical science achievements with the methodology of complexity theory made it possible to present the analysis of two management issues and to make a conclusion on the movement of governments, societies and economies of the new humanistic social-economic formation.

The aim of the present paper is to discuss the process of self-creation discernible in hitherto unpublished letters written by Wanda Dynowska-Umadevi to Tadeusz Szukiewicz, her literary representative in Poland, acting on her behalf in 1938-1939. Besides discussing the documentary value of the letters, which, for instance, shed some light on Dynowska's relationship with Tadeusz Pobożniak and her other eminent contemporaries, or contextualize the origin of selected volumes published afterwards with Biblioteka Polsko-Indyjska (Polish-Indian Library), I also try to show that the manner of Dynowska's self-creation in the personal documents that predominantly concern the efforts to publish her articles intended to popularize India in Poland could have been shaped by the particular addressee of her letters, and thus culminated in Dynowska projecting herself in her own writings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, I examine Nietzsche's doctrine of self-creation as he develops it from Schopenhauer as Educator through Gay Science (GS). While many scholars have tackled this topic, they have generally focused on a few well-known snippets from Nietzsche's works without putting them in the context of Nietzsche's carefully wrought texts or philosophical development as a whole. Nietzsche's doctrine of self-creation receives its clearest articulation in GS IV, but in order to understand that doctrine fully, I trace its genesis in the writings leading up to GS. Doing so allows me to shed light on long-standing puzzles about Nietzsche's understanding of authenticity, the relationship between self-creation and his so-called fatalism, and the nature and limits of his commitment to the aesthetic model of the self. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the article is to emphasize the insufficiency of reductionist interpretation of Descartes’ heritage and to bring into focus the constitutive role of anthropology in Descartes authentic project. Scientific novelty. Substantiation of anthropology in Descartes’ philosophical structure is based upon recognition of key importance of anthropological intention in previous philosophy as well as anthropological one in philosopher’s own works. Therefore, the insufficiency of established de-anthropologised interpretation of essential intention of Descartes’ doctrine becomes evident. Methodology. The use of phenomenology and hermeneutics enables us to comprehend the key philosopher’s ideas as the manifestation of his personality. The concentration on the interpretation of Descartes ideas as the manifestation of determining influence of external factors is the shortcoming of the established reductionist methodology. Conclusions. It was proved that anthropology that should have been the conclusion of Descartes’ philosophy under conditions of domination of reductionist attitude was withdrawn by the de-anthropologised reality image. The comprehension of the authentic image of Descartes’ philosophy provides special attention to the anthropological element in his ontology.

Мета. Мета даної статті – наголосити на недостатності редукціоністських тлумачень спадщини Декарта та акцентувати конститутивну значимість антропології у власному проекті мислителя. Методологія. Звертання до феноменології та герменевтики надає можливість осягнення ключових ідей мислителя як прояву його особистості. Недоліком усталених редукціоністських методологій є зосередженість на тлумаченні ідей Декарта як прояву детермінуючого впливу зовнішніх чинників. Новизна. Актуалізація істотності антропології в структурі філософського вчення Декарта базується на визнанні ключової значимості як антропологічної інтенції в попередній філософії, так і антропологічного проекту у власних текстах мислителя. На основі окреслених ідей оприявнюється недостатність усталених деантропологізованих тлумачень базової інтенції вчення Декарта. Висновки. Доведено, що антропологія, якою мала завершитися філософія Декарта, в умовах домінування редукціоністської настанови була витіснена деантропологізованим образом реальності. Осягнення автентичного образу філософії Декарта передбачає посилену увагу до антропологічної компоненти його онтології.

The article refers to Jerzy Jarzębski's Powieść jako autokreacja [The novel as selfcreation]. In this collection of essays Bruno Schulz's prose is both discussed together with other examples from Polish literature and presented as unique in terms of self-creation. This inconsistency is justified by Schulz's worldview: he preferred 'mythological delusion' to purely verbal self-creation (ex nihilo). Following this lead, the author of the article adds to Jarzębski's intuitions a few remarks on the complicated relationship between mythologisation and Schulz's more or less hidden quest for self-creation. Schulz's approach to the biblical myth of Joseph is juxtaposed with Die Geschichten Jaakobs by Thomas Mann, who kept on creating new variants of the original myth. Through contrast, Mann's method reveals the self-creational tendencies of Schulz, who, reaching into the depths of his own prehistory, repudiates the biblical myth. At the same time, Schulz mythologises the reality, deliberately obliterating boundaries between poiesis and mythos and thus demonstrating demiurgic aspirations, which can be considered the final attempt to reconcile not only two poetics, but also two opposing visions of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zarzycka examines the bodily aspect of the protagonist's identity in the game series Mass Effect and its relationship with the player. She draws on notions of the mechanics of self-creation as proposed by Stephen Greenblatt and Michel Foucault, as well as concepts of immuization defined by Roberto Esposito. Three clusters of factors influence a character's physical appearance: the interference of the game code, elements that depend on the player's decision, and the narrative metacommentary, which is contained in the supplement Mass Effect 3: The Citadel. Zarzycka relates these factors to the dynamics of the player's competence. The transformation of the character's body leads to a meditation on practices of self-creation, connected to the experience of gameplay as well as more broadly understood cultural participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the article is to single out and comprehend the key points of Heidegger`s vision of the main ideas of Descartes` philosophy while searching «the other beginning» of philosophizing as anthropology. The implementation of the objective assumes the solution of the following tasks: justification of the Heidegger`s idea of the critical relation to the established stereotypes of technomorphism about the basic intention of Descartes` philosophy, the reconstruction of the context of Heidegger`s considering the understanding of the basic intention and main motives of Descartes` philosophizing, the authenticity analysis of the reception of Descartes` doctrine by Heidegger in modern literature. Methodology. The achievements of the anthropologically focused thought of the 20th century, namely existentialism, philosophical anthropology, personalism, communicative philosophy have the essential potential during the constructive judgment and theoretical reconstruction of anthropological intention of philosophizing. Heidegger's heritage takes on a special significance, especially his reflections about the ways of searching and finding a substantial alternative to the technicism in the form of «the other beginning» of philosophizing. Scientific novelty. The analysis of the scientific literature, devoted to the relationship of Heidegger – Descartes, testifies to the domination of the truncated understanding of Descartes`s philosophy deprived of an anthropological component, and, as a result, ignoration of the substantial succession of the Descartes` ideas by Heidegger. Considering Heidegger's corresponding texts devoted to the understanding of the deep transformations of the New time, we find out the anthropology as a cornerstone of science and technology. Understanding the basic part of anthropology in the culture of the New time makes Heidegger devote much attention to the destruction of the established ideas of self-sufficiency of science, technology, thinking and to the detection of those hidden ones from a superficial view of personal nature of philosophical knowledge. Conclusions. Heidegger reasonably decides to pay much attention to Descartes` heritage as one of the fundamental thinkers, whose works are especially important during the simultaneous understanding of both the sources of the European anthropology, and the formation of the bases of the technogenic civilization of the New time. Heidegger's heritage considerably contributes to more authentic interpretation of the basic intention and the main motives of Descartes` philosophy. His opening new prospects to a considerable degree is caused by his own anthropological orientation, critical attitude to the linear concept of the history of philosophy, the rejection of superficial teсhnomorphism interpretation of philosophy.

The article is a continuation of theoretical deliberations on self-creation presented in the earlier work (Jančina, Kubicka, 2014). It contains a detailed characteristics of this pheno­menon, assuming that the object of self-creation activities is the Self, in the sense of its cognitive representation named the Self, and more precisely – the identity of a person. I suggest introducing the concept of a complex self-creation competence, which consists of such detailed competencies as autobiographical knowledge (thinking), autonomy, creativity, transgression, defining and committing oneself to fulfilling long-term goals, and self-reflection. In addition, I search for an adequate method for researching these detailed competencies. The article also contains argumentation in favour of the analysis of the content of self-narratives as the most accurate me­thod of self-creation research as defined here. Therefore, McAdams’s life story model is presented, and a strong argument in favour of such a choice of the research method is given in the form of the deliberations of Zbigniew Pietrasiński, the author of the self-creation concept itself, who conducted research by analysing the biographies of well-known historical figures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article sheds light on the Diogenes' concept of human being as articulated in cynic philosophy. Its focus is on the question: Who is the person Diogenes is looking for with a lantern in his hand in the full daylight? And it offers an answer: A fully individual human being, a subject protruding from the crowd, a person without property, luxury, passions, despising social conventions. The care of the self in the sense of self-creation is the point developed throughout the article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Instability, crisis that invaded all areas of life, increase of emotional elements of consciousness give rise to conflicting terms of personality development, require new balanced approaches to address the spiritual crisis in society.Relevance of the research of world-view and axiological aspects of life creation culture of individual is stipulated by the needs to overcome a kind of "spiritual hunger" in a situation where mankind fell during the deployment of globalization and the information revolution. Numerous sociological surveys show that spiritual priorities relocated to the periphery of human value orientations, became almost invisible against the background of a pragmatic worldview that gradually covers a wider range of people. Last affects emotional state of people, their relation to each other, to others and themselves. "Spiritual" in this situation is rather a kind of fashion, passion. Return of people to real not illusional spiritual values is a task without which it is impossible to talk about the culture of life creation, high spiritual atmosphere, world-view basis of personality, human values.Religious identity crisis - a loss of meaning in life. The severity of the eternal questions does not depend on age. Spirituality is the most determining factor in the formation of world-view and value orientations of individual.Therefore, aim of the article is to define true fundamental necessary linkages and interdependencies between the world-view foundations and value-orientation context of life creation of personality.World-view basis of life creation of an individual is an essential condition for existential self-assertion of human on a basis of knowledge, opinions and beliefs, values and norms, emotionally-volitional component. Personal self-realization depends on the level of awareness of the necessity of building a coherent world-view system of above phenomena, which ultimately become the absolute value orientations for the realization of live creation potential of a person.Consequently, world-view is a set of attitudes and beliefs, estimates and norms, ideals and principles which define human's relationship to the world and govern its behavior in everyday life. Moreover, worldview is a complex spiritual formation that allows a person not just to isolate themselves from the world as a subject, but also to feel their world changing and life creation possibilities that is to understand the need for personal fulfillment through creative attitude as to objective reality, and to their own spiritual world.Thus, a key factor in shaping world-view foundations and value-orientation basis of the of life creation of individual is internal, spiritual world, which could based on the ideals, convictions and beliefs transform objective reality in a way that it is not alienated, outside world, and significant for a human, full of absolute values, goals and values. Life creation in this sense can be interpreted as a process of humanization of a world. In making conclusions, it should be noted that during analysis of possible links between such phenomena of spiritual and practical life as world-view, core values of a personality and life creation, it was found that the integrity of these concepts is associated with such categories as spirituality, which in its energy-volitional sense is an interlink between them.Essential fundamental, necessary relationships and interdependence between the world-view foundations and value-orientation context of life creation of a personality were defined and proved that life creation which is based on values and beliefs, allows a person to become a person who is the spiritual core of human life activities that is based on value-willpower efforts determines human capacity for freedom, creativity, formulation of values of their lives, ultimately, to self-respect and a sense of dignity and worth. So based on research of axiological aspect of culture of life creation of a personality it was proved that life creation of an individual which is a spiritual foundation for the strong-willed world change, completing the formation of a holistic world-view and value system is a phenomenon necessary for the ontological actualization of personality in the universe of world-view meanings and values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Following Robert C. Solomon's Living with Nietzsche, I defend an interpretation of Nietzsche's views about freedom that are in line with the existentialist notion of self-creation. Given Nietzsche's emphasis on the limitations on human freedom, his critique of the notion of causa sui (self-creation out of nothing), and his critique of morality for relying on the assumption that we have free will, it may be surprising that he could be taken seriously as an existentialist--existentialism characteristically takes freedom and self-creation to be central to the human condition. Nietzsche does not endorse a radical notion of freedom; he is rather emphatically critical of any such notion. However, I argue that he does have room for a certain kind of freedom and self-creation that supports Solomon's characterization of him as an existentialist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This article draws together two lively and provocative radical theorists, Emma Goldman and Friedrich Nietzsche, and suggests that a reading at their intersections can inspire political thought, action, and resistance in particular ways. The argument is framed through and productive of a particular archetype which emerges from a reading of these thinkers, that of The Dancer. Both Goldman and Nietzsche have been noted for their affect-laden reflections on dance, as an image of the subject which evades capture within the frameworks of discipline, morality, andressentimentand which instead commits to a ceaseless and creative insurrection of- and- against the self. Here, I argue that through this image of The Dancer we can conceptualise a form of critical or anarchic subjectivity which can provocatively interpret and inspire radical political action. In the article I look at some of the ways in which dance has formed an important component of radical politics. However I also argue that dance as understood in the terms established through Goldman and Nietzsche moves beyond corporeal performance, indicating a more general ethos of the subject, one of perpetual movement, creativity, and auto-insurrection. I also reflect on the difficulties involved in the idea of ‘self-creation’; as we can see from the more problematic dimensions of Goldman's thought, creation is an ethically and ontologically ambiguous concept which, when affirmed too easily, can serve to mask the subtleties by which relations of domination persist. With this in mind, the article goes on to discuss what it might mean to ‘dance to death’, to negotiate the burden of transvaluation, limitless responsibility, and perpetual struggle which these two thinkers evoke, in the service of a creative and limitless radical political praxis. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The aim of this article is to compare different conceptions of psychological development in which the development is managed by an individual itself. It is a collection of views on the development of the life of a human being from the point of view of different psychological trends. Terms such as self-realization, self-actualization and self-creation are considered. On the basis of the conception of self-creation by Zbigniew Pietrasiński, a model of selected but crucial personal conditions for self-creation process is discussed. It includes such dimensions as: autonomy as self-determination, self-consciousness, transgression, long-term goals and lifetime creativity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Actuality of research of autopoiesis, as selfregulation of superposition and selfbuilding of geopolitical frames of society does not cause doubts, it is a sufficient popular theory in the West, and it is used in different spheres, such as engineering of software, artificial intelligence, sociology and psychotherapy. Therefore, the study of this theory has practical application in administrative processes, so as it can assists to the increase of efficiency recreation of conceptions action of feed-backs of all administrative process. The article gives the analysis one of the complex managerial categories of "autopoiesis", based on the interaction of components, which contribute to the formation of a single social organism, and are self-reproducing units in physical space; the practical application of autopoiesis to analysis of social systems can help to raise the efficiency of the whole managerial organism. In article is grounded the essence and value of theory of autopoiesis, as one of the most modern conceptions of postneoclassic science; the concept-category vehicle of theory of autopoiesis is explained for cognition difficult frames of society direction of increase effect of autopoiesis and its values for optimization of feed-back of administrative activity. Conception of autopoiesis is examined from the point of view of biology and begun with determination of cognition phenomenon, that touches the question of epistemology, communication and theory of the systems. U.Maturana marks, that cognition is the biological phenomenon and can be clear only as the biological phenomenon, that inalienable from an organism, behavior of which realize this phenomenon. Principles and determinations, that behave to the sphere of autopoetic theory, are named phenomenological aspects. In modern home philosophy, conception of autopoiesis, as constituent of the system of cognition feed-backs, is not enough investigational yet. In article told about type and mechanism of realization of reverse influence, that is related with the height of entropy of the system and, from one side, negative connection, that correct system at the rejection of her factors to stabilizing within the framework of certain quantitative parameters. And on the other side the system is able to recreate quality negative and positive copulas, that the charts of management involved at the use after excitation and due to perceptibly-informative indignations to conduct the management of all multilevel social organism. The autopoetic system inwardly supports attention on three problems: 1) system prospect; 2) autodetermination; 3) contecstualization, that present the phenomenological aspects of theory. The selfreferent systems are the systems, that will organize the states of the components of operational closed method and makes an example of brain, that is selfreferent on the basis of selforganization of the neurons. The author of the article tries to find directions of exit from a sociocultural crisis, that is possible due to the "horizontal communications", which sent to forming of public. The analysis of the theory of autopoiesis the first step was done in the exposure of concept of feedbacks at the analysis of autopoetic theory of self-regulation of the difficult frames of society, which built on soil of selfbuilding and self-government that assists forming of integral multispatial biosocial educations, is given. Autopoetic organization, as integrity, is determined by the network of productive activity of component parts: a) Take part by recursive character in the the same network of productive activity of components, the result of that is a production of the same components; b) Realize the network of productive activity as some only in the areas of space, that these components are occupy. Marked, that class of the systems that demonstrate autopoetic organization, follows to name the autopoetic systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I propose and develop a social account of global autonomy. On this view, a person is autonomous simply to the extent to which it is difficult for others to subject her to their wills. I argue that many properties commonly thought necessary for autonomy are in fact properties that tend to increase an agent's immunity to such interpersonal subjection, and that the proposed account is therefore capable of providing theoretical unity to many of the otherwise heterogeneous requirements of autonomy familiar from recent discussions. Specifically, I discuss three such requirements: (i) possession of legally protected status, (ii) a sense of one's own self-worth, and (iii) a capacity for critical reflection. I argue that the proposed account is not only theoretically satisfying but also yields a rich and attractive conception of autonomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This article argues that Sophie Calle's desire to become her own work of art exists in tension with the fear of becoming a mere product for consumption. Recognising this fear of commodification allows us to view Calle's work from a couple of new angles. Firstly, it tells a compelling story about contemporary emotional life, in particular, the emotional demands made of women. Drawing on sociological perspectives, this article will explore Calle's work in relation to a commercial culture that turns the traditionally 'feminine' emotional domain into a lucrative resource. Secondly, it allows us to see Calle's art-making as a form of defence against this injunction to 'sell oneself'. In a consumer culture in which one's sense of a private self is pushed further and further into a corner, art appears as a refuge in which one's creative singularity may be preserved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Written in the form of a journal, Sakinna Boukhedenna’s novel Journal ‘Nationalité: immigré(e)’ presents the narrative of a young woman’s peregrinations: a journey that leads her from the restricted space of a Mulhouse ‘cité’ to uncharted spaces within and outside French national territory. The protagonist embarks on a transnational adventure, going from the France of her birth to the Algeria of her parents, attempting to counteract the competitive discourses and practices of power that have undermined any easy sense of belonging. But Sakinna’s narrative moves beyond identity politics and restrictive rhetoric of place and belonging. Its importance lies in the manner in which it enacts a new space and temporality of representation that articulate affiliation as transgression. This article examines how the text provides a critical perspective on the control mechanisms of society and furnishes us with a critical perspective of the mechanisms of self-making and self-transformation. The journal form itself conjoins performativity and narrative. It becomes a performative space in which the protagonist creatively reinvents herself and transforms her social environment. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines the practices of folding paper swans by Filipina migrants employed as live-in caregivers for elderly, dying patients in Israel. These practices create a microsystem model of adjustment through precise, small-scale, and repetitive movements. This microsystem synchronizes a tripartite process: the swan's process of construction, the patient's process of decay, and the caregiver's process of self-creation. In the short term, the microsystem is sustained, but in the long term, the microsystem contains within it the seeds of its own self-destruction, as the patient eventually dies, the caregiver is reassigned to another patient or deported, and the swans are gifted. Therefore, the swan folding expands both medical anthropology understanding of caregiving as a ritual and the phenomenology of global caregivers who use immediately accessible materials-paper and glue-as an imaginative tool for ordering their daily experiences as dislocated and marginalized workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atheism, the thesis that God does not exist and Thomism, the thesis that there are 'proofs' for the existence of God based on experience and reason can be juxtaposed to each other as two extremes. On the other hand, the very statement of each implies the need to consider the other, so that the atheist and the Thomist both claim to belong to rational discourse, however much they differ in conclusions. The scriptural tradition has consistently found the one who says there is 'no God' to be 'foolish,' that is, someone with more than just an intellectual error. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A discourse of the term identity is very unambiguous in social sciences. However, there is a prevailing opinion that identity is a social construct which is characterised by plurality of identification relationships. Identity as a non-variable and stable quality of a man is in question and, on the contrary, it is understood as an ongoing process of constructing, defining and re-defining in the interaction of a man with the outer world. From the perspective of constructivism, the identity can be understood as the art of self-creation performed in concrete conditions of a social-cultural environment. In the era of late modernism the art of self-creation is being more significantly performed in the atmosphere of growing insecurity. Insecurity causes problems when building self-confidence, which complicates the process of creating a human identity. We, as consumers, experience certain insecurity when having to choose from a wide range of consumer goods and services. Uncertainty calls for a demand for the trust. Trust causes reduction of insecurity and supports self-confidence as a presumption of creating identity. In the world of consumerism and consumption significance, there is also a growing significance of trademarks and of sellers as possible sources of trust. These sources become an important part of consumers' self-creation and they become a symbol of social recognition. The inability to participate in the consumers' world and in the commercial entertainment may cause frustration and humiliation leading to unwanted socially pathological behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses Cornelius Castsoriadis' clarifications on his ideas on creation from nothing. It says Castoriadis does not argue against the principle that says everything is determined according to laws made by something else, as formulated by Mario Bunge, but the one that says this something else is the external and the internal conditions of the object in question. The philosophy of Parmenides of Elea, who believed that the universe is unchanging, is cited.

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Late nineteenth century artists were echoing novelists, biographers, and historians in attempting to "hide, reveal, or at least understand the secret life of the self." Many Victorian's relied on the visual, performing, and literary arts to act as mirrors reflecting their inner selves. James McNeill Whistler's self-portrait, The Artist in his Studio, both reveals and conceals the artist's fashioning of himself. I demonstrate that the inclusion of a mirror and Whistler's attire are pivotal to the painting's meaning. The mirror discloses that Whistler made formal and symbolic references to Diego Velázquez' Las Meninas. Whistler's mirror, however, obscures visual cues, including his use of mirror imaging. Just as Velázquez' clothing conveys meaning; Whistler's signifies his chosen persona of the dandy. The work of another dandy, Oscar Wilde's Picture of Dorian Gray, provides a means of elucidating the tension between revelation and concealment in Whistler's painting since Wilde's character of the artist is based on Whistler. In the book, a painting takes on the reflective characteristics of a mirror, but through the artist's perceptual genius, exposes Dorian's hidden interior versus his exterior visage. Whistler's self-portrait, like the creations of Velázquez and Wilde, communicates meaning through the rejection of conventional visual mirroring properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper makes a case for the new paradigm of freedom which has been elaborated by thinkers such as Cornelius Castoriadis and Michel Foucault. In response to the critique of the subject, freedom is construed now as limited and agonistic, calling for an ongoing struggle against various constraints. But this idea is coupled with a heightened appreciation of contingency and creativity. Individuals can bring new possibilities into existence, which go beyond any predefined alternatives. The paper argues that this is a tenable and empowering figure of freedom which overcomes the deficiencies of earlier modern views. Essentialist notions, which can be found in Kant and Marx, contract freedom by tying it down to unchanging universal laws and definite conditions of realization, while alternative accounts of negative liberty fail to address the constrained nature of human agency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]