The Escape from Autonomy. Why the Modern World Is Surrendering Free Will

An opinion essay arguing that modern loss of autonomy is mostly voluntary. Drawing on Erich Fromm's escape from freedom, it examines radical activism, high control religion, and engagement driven media as routes by which individuals hand their judgment to a collective. It distinguishes healthy trust in expertise from tribal conformity and proposes both personal practices and structural incentive reforms. First in a planned series of three essays.

Authors

Publication Details

Journal
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Published
2026-11-01
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23856904
Primary Topic
Philosophy, Sociology, Political Theory
Type
preprint
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The Escape from Autonomy. Why the Modern World Is Surrendering Free Will

Damon John
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Philosophy, Sociology, Political Theory
preprint

The Escape from Autonomy. Why the Modern World Is Surrendering Free Will

Damon John
preprint en

Abstract

An opinion essay arguing that modern loss of autonomy is mostly voluntary. Drawing on Erich Fromm's escape from freedom, it examines radical activism, high control religion, and engagement driven media as routes by which individuals hand their judgment to a collective. It distinguishes healthy trust in expertise from tribal conformity and proposes both personal practices and structural incentive reforms. First in a planned series of three essays.

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Philosophy, Sociology, Political Theory
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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The Escape from Autonomy. Why the Modern World Is Surrendering Free Will — Damon John · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS