1. The state of being subject to or governed by an external law, force, or authority rather than by one's own will or reason.
Usage: philosophy; formal
2. In Kantian philosophy, the condition of the will being determined by desires, inclinations, or external circumstances rather than by moral law or reason.
Usage: philosophy; technical

Examples

• The philosopher argued that true freedom requires autonomy, not heteronomy under arbitrary rules.
• Kant distinguished between autonomy, where reason governs the will, and heteronomy, where external desires do.
• Living under heteronomy means your actions are determined by others' demands rather than your own principles.
• The child's heteronomy gradually diminishes as she develops the capacity for independent moral reasoning.
• A society based on heteronomy relies on external punishment and reward rather than internal moral conviction.