This study aims to clarify the relationship between paternalism and the ethics of care, which have been viewed as opposites. In particular, the ethics of care criticizes paternalism. However, both the ethics of care and paternalism have “for you” as their starting point, so it is difficult to conclude that they are in opposition to each other. In this paper, we attempted to shed light on the relationship between the ethics of care and paternalism. To do so, we took the following three steps. First, we studied ideological developments surrounding the definition of paternalism. Second, we introduced the justification theory of paternalism. There are various reasons for paternalism, and“ respect for autonomy” has been proposed as the most plausible justification. However, the understanding of “respect for autonomy” differs among commentators. Third, we present“ respect for autonomy” according to the ethics of care, where “respect for autonomy” differs from the liberal understanding of autonomy. Through these measures, we reconsidered the link between the ethics of care and paternalism, with “respect for autonomy” as a clue (178)
