Benjamin Constant
Against Kant: telling the truth is a duty only towards those who have a right to the truth.
Life
Franco-Swiss writer and political thinker (1767-1830), born in Lausanne, a liberal deputy under the Restoration. He contrasts the liberty of the ancients, made of participation in power, with that of the moderns, made of private independence and individual rights. He also wrote the novel Adolphe and a large study On Religion.
Main works
Defends attachment to principles, including a passage qualifying the duty to tell the truth.
A short novel about love and the weakness of the heart.
Shows that the moderns want above all private independence and protection of rights.
In his own words
« We can no longer enjoy the liberty of the ancients, which consisted of active and constant participation in collective power. Our liberty must consist of the peaceful enjoyment of private independence. »
« The danger of modern liberty is that, absorbed in the enjoyment of our private independence and the pursuit of our particular interests, we may too easily give up our right to share in political power. »
« Telling the truth is therefore a duty only towards those who have a right to the truth. Now no man has a right to the truth that harms others. »
Positions
click a row to see the evidenceModerns want private independence and individual rights, not the ancients' share in collective power.
Constant, De la liberté des Anciens comparée à celle des Modernes (1819)