Reinterpreting Libertarianism

Demonstrating the diversity of philosophy and the interdisciplinary nature of research on libertarianism, this book explores the latest theoretical and empirical developments in libertarian studies. The chapters in the opening section take a novel look at fundamental libertarian concepts such as voluntariness, freedom or aggression. A critical analysis of these concepts shows that they have not always been properly understood, and that a re-examination of them makes room for new and sometimes unexpected conclusions to be drawn for libertarian theory. The next set of chapters deal with the fundamental question of how to justify libertarianism: from attempts to combine intuitionist and consequentialist approaches, through replacing the basic concept of self-ownership with that of human dignity, to new approaches to the question of the economic analysis of the libertarian order. The third section offers new insights into familiar libertarian problems by looking at them through the lenses of other disciplines: for example, from the vantage point of psychology or game theory. Finally, the last set of chapters addresses new or neglected issues in libertarian discourse, such as the feasibility of fully private health care, the hotly debated issue of regulating digital technologies, and how to reconcile the existence of an anarcho-capitalist order with international law. The book will be of great interest to political economists, political philosophers, political scientists and ethicists and everyone in libertarianism in all its forms.