Philosophy: Sir Isaiah Berlin and Two Concepts of Liberty

In his essay ‘Two Concepts of Liberty�E(1958), Sir Isaiah Berlin made considerable intellectual ground on the philosophical definition of Freedom ¯ notably, it was here that the archaic distinctions between ‘Positive�Eand ‘Negative�Efreedom were reexamined and given a fresh, clear outlook. The ideas offered in his essay on the nature of these two ‘freedoms�Eprovided philosophers with such intellectual ammunition that they continue to be debated over, even to this present day. In trying …

…liberty, being the more basic, fundamental sense of freedom, must be necessarily present before positive liberty can exist. This is true, as one must be free to choose, before considering what is chosen. In conclusion, what seemed like cosmetic differences of the same argument became distinct and separate, upon analysis of the underlying implications of these same differences. It is important thus to understand these subtle, yet fundamental differences between these two conceptions of Liberty.