Is there such a thing as autonomy?

This topic came up in Ethics II yesterday, and I find it a fascinating one actually. Do we really have autonomy? I guess, theologically, this can be a free will discussion, but I don't even want to go there. I understand that on a conscious level we make choices that appear to be autonomous, but are they really? We are so impacted by the myriad people around us--the community that brought us up. It is what Barbara Brown Taylor calls the "Luminous Web." We are connected to one another in complex ways.

John Stuart Mill

Dr. Marga's response to the question was that autonomy is crucial for any discussion of ethics. I'm not so sure. It certainly is required for an individual view of what is ethical, but maybe the idea of an individual ethic is actually a lie. I want to suggest that we can't be individually ethical; instead, the community is the smallest ground for an ethical decision. What is said to be 'good' is only so because of the interplay of individual and community.

My point here is not in the abstract. There is a crucial difference between the ability to choose and the concept of autonomy. You can choose between right and wrong (even if those choices won't determine your salvation; yes, I'm Lutheran), but those choices are not autonomous. You are the product of your community, and the community is impacted by your choice. You are both created and creator.