Liberalism- The core ideas of Liberalism, Society (SB)

Question 1

Liberalism’s view of human nature is…

Answer 1

optimistic

Question 2

Liberalism’s optimistic view of human nature, particularly our capacity for reason informs liberals…

Answer 2

about whether ‘society’ can ever exists without a state

Question 3

Thomas Hobbes classic work

Answer 3

Leviathan (1651)

Question 4

In his classic work, Leviathan (1651), Thomas Hobbes argued

Answer 4

that human nature is so brutally selfish that no society could possibly arise or survive, until human nature is restrained by a strong formal authority- in short, a state.

Question 5

Early liberal’s view such as Locke offered a what type of view in comparison to Thomas Hobbes

Answer 5

Very different view

Question 6

Early liberal’s view such as Locke offered a very different view than Thomas Hobbes,

Answer 6

citing the existence of ‘natural’ society, with ‘natural laws’ and therefore natural rights, all of which preceded by the state

Question 7

(Locke) Natural rights:

Answer 7

the ‘right’ to life, liberty, property and happiness

Question 8

So for Liberals , life before the state was created was…

Answer 8

not ‘nasty, brutish and short’ (as Hobbes famously asserted) but potentially pleasant, civilised and long

Question 9

The liberal belief in a ‘natural society’, where certain ‘natural rights’ are enjoyed, helps explain…

Answer 9

why liberals place so much importance upon the individual

Question 10

What did John Stuart Mill emphasise the purpose of a civilised society, during the mid-19th century ?

Answer 10

the main purpose of any civilised society- ‘natural’ or manufactured- is to facilitate individualism

Question 11

Who emphasised that the main purpose of any civilised society- ‘natural’ or manufactured- is to facilitate individualism and when?

Answer 11

John Stuart Mill during the mid-19th century

Question 12

What did Mill and other liberals argue ?

Answer 12

that each individual has a unique personality and peculiar talents; that individuals are rational in pursuit of their self interests; and that individuals are egotistical individuals driven by a wish to fulfil their potential and a desire to be self reliant and independent

therefore, in the view of all this, each individual seeks freedom

Question 13

For Mill, in his critical work On Liberty (1859), the argument of each individual seeking freedom meant…

Answer 13

freedom from any dependency on other and the freedom to live one’s life in a way that maximises self-reliance and self- fulfilment.

Question 14

Mill’s critical work?

Answer 14

On Liberty (1859)

Question 15

Liberals believe that the ‘default setting’ of any society is

Answer 15

a focus upon individual freedom and that any society which seeks to deny individualism is dysfunctional

Question 16

the ‘right’ to property is defined by Locke as

Answer 16

‘that with which Man has mixed his labour’

Question 17

The ‘right’ to property is regarded by liberals

Answer 17

as particularly important, as it is seen as the tangible expression of an individual within society

Question 18

For later liberals what is property

Answer 18

For later liberals like Mill, property is also the ‘prism’ through which individuals develop their potential, providing an opportunity, when civilised communities, for men and women to nurture their taste and judgment

Question 19

Individualism is a

Answer 19

vital principle for liberal ideology

Question 20

Individualism is a vital principle for liberal ideology

Answer 20

it means that individual needs should be at the heart of political thought, economic life and social organisation, and that society should prioritise the improvement of diverse, individual lives

Question 21

Individualism implications are that liberal politicians seek to:

Answer 21

-maximise the no. of individuals achieving self-determination (control of their own lives)

-maximised the no. of individuals achieving self-realisation (discovering their ‘true’ selves and potential)

-maximised the no. of individuals attaining self- fulfilment (a sense of one’s ‘personal mission’ being achieved)