Law, freedom and diversity of ends in the Value Pluralism

Abstract

The article analyzes the relation between the idea of law and freedom in the Value Pluralism. From Isaiah Berlin's work, the article presents three conceptions of law: the law as arbitrary intervention, the law as non-interference and the law as a morally accepted intervention. The first one occurs when the law unfairly forces the subjects to an action. It is this idea that gives meaning to Berlin's phrase: "every law is a violation of freedom". The second one corresponds to the libertarian approach, which Berlin criticizes because it destroys freedom of choice. Finally, the article points out that Value Pluralism reconciles the idea of law as an intervention with the concept of freedom.