Consent
Agreement or permission β whether informed, induced, coerced, or manufactured. Notice only one of these is real.
How We Say It
kΙnΒ·sent
Where It Comes From
Latin consentire β to feel together, agree. From com- (together) + sentire (to feel). The political doctrine of consent of the governed traces to Locke and the social-contract tradition. Informed consent is a 20th-century elaboration.
How It's Been Used
Operates in distinct legal domains with different standards β contract, medical ethics, sexual conduct, political legitimacy. The Nuremberg Code (1947) established informed consent as a baseline of medical ethics in response to Nazi experimentation. Affirmative-consent standards in sexual assault law are more recent. Each domain debates what makes consent free, informed, and meaningful.