I want to tell you about autonomoktisis. We could also call it the autonomy approach. Simply put: People, societies, and governments should seek to convert heteronomy into autonomy. Let’s explore what that means. What follows is a prolegomenon, intended to chart a direction, not conclude a journey.

The central journey of moral life is from heteronomy to autonomy. Heteronomy is the state of being a reader of rules—obe...