Intellectual Virtues and the Freedom of Reason

Abstract

This article critically reviews Josep Lluís Blasco’s argument in his public address La llibertat de la raó, where he argues for (i) that freedom plays a central role not only in the practical sphere of reason, but also in the theoretical sphere; and (ii) that, nevertheless, reason’s division in two spheres is not cancelled. Particularly, I first consider a series of minor arguments, which are judged unsound regarding (i), but which can give some support to (ii). Next, I present a reconstruction of the key argument for (i) and clarify the force of the premises. I claim that it must be interpreted as a transcendental argument, parallel to Kant’s argument for the existence of freedom in the moral sphere. Finally, based on a double distinction, an account of the division of reason, which seems to follow from Blasco’s view, is proposed.

Key words: Freedom, Reason, Intellectual Virtue, Epistemic Merit.