Freedom, “just another word for nothing left to lose,” has become the catchphrase that separates the “free” world from the “autocratic” world. Capturing the concept of freedom gains the high ground and automatically identifies the adversary as the enemy of freedom. Not that simple.
Lost in history is an age’s old examination of the concept of freedom, its diversion from its real meaning, its overreach to becoming an encumbrance, and its excesses that contribute to polarization, unfair advantage, power-grabbing, violence, and a subtle form of mind control.
Psychoanalyst, Eric Fromm, examined the concept of freedom in his book, Escape from Freedom.
..freedom has a twofold meaning for modern man: that he has been freed from traditional authorities and has become an 'individual,' but that at the same time he has become isolated, powerless and an instrument of purposes outside of himself, alienated from himself and others; furthermore, that this state undermines his self, weakens and frightens him, and makes him ready for submission to new kinds of bondage. Positive freedom on the other hand is identical with the full realization of the individual's potentialities, together with his ability to live actively and spontaneously.
Freedom ─ a problem?
American history is composed of memorable dates and incessant battles "to gain freedom from the political, economic, and spiritual shackles that have bound men." After each war to end all wars, the people of the world's greatest democracy couldn't prevent their government from restricting freedoms, attacking adversaries, and allying with oppressive forces that limited freedom in other parts of the world.
“Can freedom become a burden, too heavy for man to bear, something he tries to escape from?...Is there not also, perhaps, besides an innate desire for freedom, an instinctive wish for submission?" Fromm quotes the educational philosopher John Dewey: "The serious threat to our democracy is not the existence of foreign totalitarian states. It is the existence within our own personal attitudes and within our own institutions of conditions that have given a victory to external authority. The battlefield is also accordingly here ─ within ourselves and our institutions.”
Social and economic life shape and condition needs. The escape from freedom also finds "the need to be related to the world outside oneself, the need to avoid aloneness." Religious extremes, ultra-nationalism, intense patriotism, and often war, no matter how they degrade human life, connect individuals with others and provide a refuge from isolation. "..the more man gains freedom in the sense of emerging from the original oneness with man and nature and the more he becomes an 'individual,' he has no choice but to unite himself with the world in the spontaneity of love and productive work or else to seek a kind of security by such ties with the world that destroys his freedom and the integrity of his individual self."
Emergence of the Individual
The biblical myth of Adam and Eve's expulsions from the Garden of Eden describes the first act of freedom. By refusing to follow God's orders, man and woman freed themselves from submission. But their act had consequences: "The original harmony between man and nature is broken. God proclaims war between man and woman, and war between nature and man." Fromm makes a critical distinction: "'Freedom from' is not identical with positive freedom, with 'freedom to'."
The struggle against the vagaries of nature, and the need for cooperation in obtaining resources and security, directed mankind to unite in clans and communities. The ties hindered human development and eventually resulted in autocratic forces dominating social and economic life. The domination became complete in a feudal society where the serfs completely lost individuation and freedom. The slaved masses suppressed their egos and regarded themselves as members of a general milieu. They felt fortunate to have land to till, food to eat, and be provided with physical security by military vassals and powerful kings who defended them against warring tribes and marauders. "Personal, economic and social life were dominated by rules and obligations from which practically no sphere of activity was exempted...But although a person was not free in the modern sense, neither was he alone and isolated...The social order was conceived as a natural order, and being a definite part of it gave man a feeling of security and belonging." The Protestant Reformation and the rise of capitalism slowly returned individuation and freedom to western humanity.
Freedom During the Reformation
The Renaissance began most forcibly in Italy, due to Italy's commercial advantages of trade routes and seaports close to the Orient. It gave rise to a wealthy and powerful upper class, "filled with a spirit of initiative, power and ambition." These classes destroyed the medieval social structure and stimulated the emergence of a more modern individual. "The masses who did not share the wealth and power of the ruling group had lost the security of their former status and had become a shapeless mass."
Commercial and banking institutions originated in the Italian Renaissance culture. The economic and social situations of Central and Western Europe, together with the doctrines of Luther and Calvin, provided the stimulus for the development of capitalism.
...Protestantism and Calvinism, while giving expression to a new feeling of freedom, at the same time constituted an escape from the burden of freedom...Protestantism was the answer to the human needs of the frightened, uprooted and isolated individual who had to orient and to relate himself to a new world...Those very qualities which were rooted in this character structure ─ compulsion to work, passion for thrift, the readiness to make one's life a tool for the purpose of an extra personal power, asceticism, and a compulsive sense of duty ─ were character traits which became productive forces in capitalistic society and without which modern economic and social development are unthinkable.
Security and traditions of medieval society bound the individual. The Protestant Reformation severed the bonds. It gave the individual a feeling of independence but, "at the same time made him feel alone and isolated, filled him with doubt and anxiety, and drove him into a new submission and into a compulsive and irrational activity."
Aspects of Freedom for Modern Man
Capitalism filled in the gaps of freedom. The spiritual freedom allotted by the Protestant Reformation grew into social and political freedom. "Economic freedom was the basis of this development, the middle class was its champion." People learned to rely on themselves, to make their own decisions and carve out their own welfare. "…capitalism not only freed man from traditional bonds, but it also contributed tremendously to the positive freedom, to the growth of an active, critical, responsible self," but not without consequences.
The individual became subordinated to capitalist production and worked for profit's sake, for the development of new investment capital and conspicuous spending. "Yet, while the principle of work for the sake of the accumulation of capital objectively is of enormous value for the progress of mankind, subjectively it has made man work for extra personal ends, made him a servant to the very machine he built, and thereby has given him a feeling of personal insignificance and powerlessness."
Capitalism also brought economic recessions, global wars, and terrorism, all of which emphasized personal insignificance and helplessness.
Liberty and Freedom
Liberty and Freedom are often used as if they are the same. Liberty allows expression; freedom gives a positive outcome to that expression. The Constitution gave Americans liberty and the opportunity to express themselves in speech and vote; the 1964 Civil Rights intended to enable freedom for all Americans, supposedly assuring that they would not be discriminated against in their expressions. Even today, it is questionable if liberty ─ the right of free expression ─ translates into freedom ─ a meaningful outcome of liberty.
The reality of freedom is that its thesis has an unattended antithesis; “freedom from” is as important as “freedom to.” Not everyone has equal access to knowledge, education, and resources. Those who have more access, and it may be a minority, establish advantages for controlling the decision-making process and making more reliable decisions when compared with those who have less access. Continuous increases in inequalities in wealth provide continuous increases in inequalities in the control of communications and access to power and permit the use of freedoms for special advancement. Information control, lobbying, and deal-making allow small groups to gain the majority in a pluralistic society and dominate that society.
Excessive freedom has led to violating the freedoms of others. Gun violence, polarization, political stagnation, and misinformation are the results of a lack of containment of extreme expressions of freedom. A “freedom to” demands evaluation when it causes a “freedom from.”
Mechanisms of Escape
After the bonds of security had been severed, human beings had to find means to overcome the feelings of powerlessness and aloneness.
By one course, the individual can progress to 'positive freedom'; he/she can relate himself spontaneously to the world in love and work, in the genuine expression of his emotional, sensuous, and intellectual capacities... The other course open to him is to fall back, to give up his freedom, and to try to overcome his aloneness by eliminating the gap that has arisen between himself and the world.… This course of escape is characterized by its compulsive character, like every escape from threatening panic it is also characterized by the more or less complete surrender of individuality and the integrity of the self. Thus it is not a solution which leads to happiness and positive freedom.
Automaton conformity is the most often used mechanism of escape.
..the individual ceases to be himself; he adopts entirely the kind of personality offered to him by cultural patterns; and he therefore becomes exactly as all others are and as they expect him to be. The discrepancy between 'I' and the world disappears and with it the conscious fear of aloneness and powerlessness.
Freedom and Democracy
American democracy has freed its citizens from many external restraints; sexual, economic, social, and religious. Democracy has given them opportunities to expand their lives and express themselves in many areas. Has it given the citizens true individualism or only an illusion of individuality?
Original thinking, spontaneity, emotional expression, and deep feelings are often subdued in American life and replaced by making 'truth' relative, "a matter of taste." Thoughts and feelings are internalized, placed within from the outside, leading to the necessity to conform and to an eventual loss of identity.
By conforming with the expectations of others, by not being different, doubts about one's own identity are silenced and a certain security is gained. However, the price is high. Giving up spontaneity and individuality thwarts life. Positive freedom consists of the spontaneous activity of the total and well-integrated person.
Escape from Freedom
Fearful of being isolated from the larger mass of citizens, from losing attachment to the nation, and of being accused of not fulfilling their patriotic duty, many escape from freedom, surrendering their power and self-fulfillment to prevent aloneness. They allow erroneous policies to endanger their lives and the lives of their fellow citizens.
Those who retain their convictions and respond with spontaneous certainty retain their self. Those who strive for a more careful examination and positive criticism of policies and place thoughtful expression before misguided patriotism diminish identification with the popular image, but exhibit a freedom 'to' and maintain a unique identity.
Freedom for all in a democratic society is not a given. Addressing inequalities and sacrificing some freedoms to guarantee more vital and positive freedoms are still on the agenda.
Note: All words in quotes are from Escape From Freedom by Erich Fromm, first published by Holt, Rineheart, and Winston, New York, 1941.