He found this to be a necessity, order for him to speak universal truths and express his own genius and be believable to others. Emerson felt that nothing in this world can bring one peace but one’s self and that only the triumph of principles can bring one peace. These last two lines from “Self Reliance” essay represent Emerson’s individualistic concepts (Ralph 4). Emerson values the equal individual that is in touch with their universal genius. Fredrick Douglass is evidence of discovering his own brilliance and universal truths.
Roosevelt insists that everyone has the right of “equality… jobs… security… civil liberties” which should be provided and ensured by the government (Roosevelt 154). In pursuit of freedom for all, Roosevelt seeks to provide all of his citizens with several freedoms, or rights, which establish equality within the society. Roosevelt acknowledges the need for the people to be provided with justice to improve the country. By providing the people with equality, a government is able to create a country which provides freedom through the cooperation of the
Be it resolved that John Locke’s Theory is stronger and better than that of Thomas Hobbes, on the basis of man’s ‘state of nature’; social contract and ‘the right of rebellion’. Thomas Hobbes and John Locke were opposing philosophers from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries during the time of enlightenment. Their viewpoints are important in explaining differences in the mind and the way people infer human behaviour in a natural state. Locke believed that all men are born with freedom, equality, and independence. All men have the right to be free and by forming a social contract, a nation can be brought together.
Jefferson says, “We hold these truths to be self-evidence, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” (Jefferson, 80). He states how having these natural rights mean happiness to the citizens. We were created to use our ability to reach what we desire happiness should be. In “The Aim of Man” Aristotle has his own views when it comes to material and spiritual happiness. Aristotle argues that material is what an object consist of and this matter we could not live without.
John Locke, who is often credited as the father of human rights and liberalism, maintained that humans were free and equal, and that the ideal society was based on a social contract between the humans and those who governed. He basically employed the concept of natural rights and the social contract to argue that the rule of law should replace absolutism in government, that rulers were subject to the consent of the governed and that individuals had an essential right to life, liberty and property. As we mentioned in class, Thomas Hobbes was the one who started the theory of social contract and developed it elaborately arguing for unlimited authority in a ruler. The intellectual journey of liberalism kept going beyond John Locke with the Enlightenment, a period in the 18th century that shows intellectual penetration that questioned old traditions and influenced monarchies. Some other documents asserting individual rights include 1689 the English Bill of Rights, 1789 the French Declaration on the Rights of Man and Citizen and 1791 the US Constitution and Bill of Rights that all are written precursors to today’s human rights documents.
This shows that Mill saw humans as creative individuals thus leading to an interest of tolerance as a political virtue i.e. political tolerance. The liberals argued that our own freedom depends upon all people enjoying the same freedom. This lead to their view of the state be limited to a minimum number of functions, mainly confined to protecting people from each other, defending the nation and preventing the accumulation of
Baron de Montesquieu’s idea on nature of government were that all men were made upon equal rights. Baron de Montesquieu believed that all man were trusted to govern. The Enlightenment thinkers which were Abigail Adams, John Locke, and Baron de Montesquieu all said that their idea on nature or government would have to protect the people’s natural and equal rights. All enlightenment thinkers thought that
Rawls’ Principles of Justice “Justice is the virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought”(Rawls, p. 581). John Rawls’ book, A Theory of Justice, is an in-depth analysis and interpretation of social justice. Rawls presents and discusses two principles of justice, the liberty principle and the equality principle, which are the basis of his theory on justice. Rawls’ first principle of justice states “Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive basic liberty compatible with a similar liberty for others”(Rawls, p. 586). This principle is basically asserting that fundamental liberties come first over anything concerning justice.
Justice as Fairness: Political Not Metaphsyical This article by John Rawls discusses the theory of justice which was presented in his book, “A Theory of Justice.” Rawls espouses the concept that justice should be devoid of controversial philosophical and religious doctrines, and instead be understood as political, or actually practical in nature. He further discusses two fundamental principles which should guide this thought process, specifically, that each individual has equal access to basic rights or liberties, and that social and economic inequalities must be attached to offices and positions that provide the greatest benefits for those most disadvantaged. Rawls goes into great detail to explain that his theory of justice is designed, not to focus on the metaphysical or epistemological, but rather as a structure for informed and willing political agreement between citizens who are viewed equally as being free. He avoids the attendant issues that may be considered philosophical, moral or religious, by using the argument that there would be no way to resolve them politically. Rawls also speaks to the issues of social cooperation, which is governed by publically recognized rules that once again, focus on political practicability and the rational advantages that would extend from this cooperation.
Why Democracy? Preserving Human Right: Democracies attempted to preserve individual freedom and to promise equality of opportunity. The U.S. Declaration of Independence expressed the belief that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” The declarations added that the people may change or abolish the government if it interferes with those rights. People once thought that the greatest obstacles to individual freedom and equality were political.