On Liberty

Free speech is often seen as key tenant to liberal ideology. Liberal ideology is the ‘commitment to the individual and the desire to construct a society in which people can satisfy their interests and achieve fulfilment’ (Heywood 2012:24). Liberalism promotes individualism and is resistant to forms of control, especially government control, that remove an individual’s freedom. Classical liberalism encourages only minimal role of the state with no interference in the private lives of…

fit. For Sandel, the civic virtues that are essential to democracy’s survival require constant and continuous discussion in the public sphere. However, in the second half of the twentieth century we see a shift in one’s intentions. Sandel claims, “Liberty depended no on cultivating virtue, but rather on placing certain rights beyond the reach of majorities”…

hateful and Islamophobic content that, (from the complainant’s point of view) allowed for no opportunity to be countered. There are parallels between John Stuart Mill’s work On liberty and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms enacted by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau on what boundaries to place on such a precious liberty. Both generally conclude that a person’s freedoms must not be infringed upon unless they harm others in society. Does the publishing a critical opinion of one’s religion…

An Individual’s Right to Choose. In John Stuart Mill’s “On Liberty,” he placed much emphasis on individual liberty and its vital role in political society. To Mill, this phrase may be defined as the liberty of the individual to be the final judge over their actions; to decide what is right and wrong and to act upon that standard. Mill also implies one’s freedom to pursue one’s own individuality. He also believed in a society in which each individual leads their own distinctive life according to…

that the impact of great equalities of wealth needs to be lessened. Liberals usually advocate vigorous public policies to reduce or eliminate these inequalities. They see government as the means to make this possible, while also preserving civil liberties/rights, and progressive values. Liberals believe that public policy should be egalitarian and that it is the government’s responsibility to…

In short, the state is liable for the protection of every individual’s rights when being transgressed by another, though any further interaction between the state and the citizen will be deemed a trespassing upon that citizen’s right to liberty. In such a society, referred to as the night-watchman state by Nozick, every person contains their own natural rights but in the formation of the authoritative group, some of those rights must be handed forth to the state in order for the policing…

Liberalism, throughout centuries, has spread and established its values and ideology on a global scale. However, whilst liberal democracy approached towards a process of political universalisation proposing itself as a role model, a countless number of contradictions and limitations emerged from this political system. The so-called “end of history,” eulogised by Francis Fukuyama and achieved by a victorious liberal democracy, has at the same time fostered scepticism and diffidence in the very…

So an ideal state should be controlled by the society and subordinate to it. The state should base upon self sufficient small villages, enlightened and self regulated individuals. Authority should be decentralized which is essential for individual liberty. Individual should be selfless and must give more emphasis on performing duties than to enjoy rights. This state would not be a western type of constitutional democracy but a spiritual democracy or Swaraj base upon morality and non violence…

John Rawls and Karl Marx both see equality as an important value in human society; indeed, they both see it as something people are entitled to and as the foundation upon which the ideal society is built. However, they diverge drastically in how they conceptualize the way an egalitarian society would operate and how they believe such a society could be achieved. Concerning the former, Marx envisioned a communist utopia, whereas Rawls was a strong believer in liberal democracy. In terms of the…

the government setting laws that a person can not break ensures that goodness for all can be maintained and everyone can live free. Surprisingly enough, restraints can be good and can spread happiness more efficient than a person having individual liberty/freedom to make their own decisions in hopes that it is the right one and does not harm another. Mill does not see this and does not accept it. He refuses to acknowledge that by giving up some freedoms means the potential gain of state…