Leibniz, this study argues, is the genuine initiator of German Idealism. His analysis of freedom as spontaneity and the relations he establishes among freedom, justice, and progress underlie Kant's ideas of rightful interaction and his critiques of Enlightened absolutism. Freedom and Perfection offers a historical examination of perfectionism, its political implications and transformations in German thought between 1650 and 1850. Douglas Moggach demonstrates how Kant's followers elaborated a new ethical-political approach, 'post-Kantian perfectionism', which, in the context of the French Revolution, promoted the conditions for free activity rather than state-directed happiness. Hegel, the Hegelian School, and Marx developed this approach further with reference to the historical process as the history of freedom. Highlighting the decisive importance of Leibniz for subsequent theorists of the state, society, and economy, Freedom and Perfection offers a new interpretation of important schools of modern thought and a vantage point for contemporary political debates.

‘Kant transformed political philosophy by making freedom rather than happiness the ‘essential end' of humankind, and Fichte, Hegel, and Marx rang variations on this theme.  True enough, but so did Schiller and von Humboldt, and it all began with Leibniz, whom Kant adapted as well as criticized, and who remained the source of so much in German philosophy.  Douglas Moggach tells this important story with verve as well as accuracy!'

Paul Guyer - Brown University

‘Douglas Moggach unfolds the subjectivity-theoretical foundations of freedom by tracing the multi-layered paths from Leibniz to Marx. He demonstrates their relevance for contemporary ethics with impressive historical depth and great systematic clarity. For all readers interested in an up-to-date practical philosophy Freedom and Perfection is simply THE book to read.'

Michael Quante - University of Münster

‘Douglas Moggach's Freedom and Perfection is a remarkable achievement. By tracing the development of German idealist thought from Leibniz, and with a focus on its political expression, Moggach has revealed a movement with that ‘unity in diversity' which for Leibniz had characterized the goal of the modern political community itself.'

Paul Redding - The University of Sydney

‘Moggach's impressive scholarship blends deep and insightful attention to primary sources in the field of German idealism with pervasive bibliographic references from scholarly literature and shows how both of these concepts are operative in reframing a conception of the common good that is based, not on the pursuit of happiness, but, rather, the pursuit of self-perfection. Highly recommended.’

J. G. Moore Source: Choice

‘This volume provides a refreshingly comprehensive take on philosophical discourse and political thought in the early modern and modern German-speaking world, arguing that the underpinnings of German Idealism lie in Leibniz’s revision of natural law theory. … Moggach offers a compelling re-evaluation of political thought and philosophy in German Idealism. His book set out from a simple premise, the interpretation of Ulpian’s Roman law principles. Transformed by Leibniz, these became part of an expansive metaphysical theory of natural law that had a profound impact on the later political tradition from Wolff to Kant and beyond. The principal merit of Moggach’s book is to have recovered this history in all of its intricate detail for its readers. Through its analysis, the trajectory of German political philosophy is rewritten as a profound engagement with Leibniz’s thought.’

Nathaniel Boyd Source: Archive for the History of Philosophy