The Vulnerable Society

Many of the heated debates currently taking place reflect a gradual shift in values. This shift is fundamentally changing our society, yet we are barely aware of it. It seems that, more and more, we are accepting limitations on our individual freedom in response to a growing sense of vulnerability. In doing so, we are slowly transforming ourselves into a society of “vulnerable” individuals.

In her compelling study, Frauke Rostalski sheds light on this new conflict between freedom and vulnerability, and calls for an open dialogue: How much vulnerability are we willing to accept at the expense of freedom? Rostalski shows how notions of vulnerability have already led to changes in the law, not only in matters of medical risk such as the pandemic, but also in areas such as sexual self-determination, euthanasia, protection from discrimination, and abortion. However, vulnerability is not merely the underlying guiding principle of a new legal order and a new ethic. This new sensitivity has also permeated our culture of debate, hindering societal negotiation processes. Frauke Rostalski urges us to keep this “weakness of discourse” in check—so that we can have an urgent conversation about freedom and vulnerability.