Rethinking Positive and Negative Liberty

Rethinking Positive and Negative Liberty PDF

Author: Maria Dimova-Cookson

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2019-09-04

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 0429766203

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This book argues that the distinction between positive and negative freedom remains highly pertinent today, despite having fallen out of fashion in the late twentieth century. It proposes a new reading of this distinction for the twenty-first century, building on the work of Constant, Green and Berlin who led the historical development of these ideas. The author defends the idea that freedom is a dynamic interaction between two inseparable, yet sometimes fundamentally, opposed positive and negative concepts – the yin and yang of freedom. Positive freedom is achieved when one succeeds in doing what is right, while negative freedom is achieved when one is able to advance one’s wellbeing. In an environment of culture wars, resurging populism and challenge to progressive liberal values, recognising the duality of freedom can help us better understand the political dilemmas we face and point the way forward. The book analyses the duality of freedom in more philosophical depth than previous studies and places it within the context of both historical and contemporary political thinking. It will be of interest to students and scholars of liberalism and political theory.

The American Idea of Freedom

The American Idea of Freedom PDF

Author: Gary J. Quinn

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published: 2013-08-08

Total Pages: 206

ISBN-13: 9781482661057

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The American Idea of Freedom describes the early American and Constitutional concept of liberty as understood by the nation's Founders and relates it to current notions of freedom in this country. The book shows that much of the political and cultural turmoil that surrounds us today can be traced to a faulty understanding of freedom. Whereas popular ideas today center on the pursuit of individual advancements and the rights of self-expression, early Americans viewed independence much more in terms of private property rights and genuine educational opportunities. The Founders laid heavy emphasis on these two fundamentals because Constitutional liberties are built on them and are threatened by inattention to their importance. The framework of government they created foresaw many of our current political and social difficulties and was designed to prevent them. They knew that the freedom they envisioned could be achieved and maintained only by vigilant attention to property rights and quality general education of the citizenry. We are slowly losing contact with their idea of liberty and are moving toward some undefined form of social and political life not in keeping with our American constitutional heritage. The unique spirit of freedom known in America since its beginnings is being seriously threatened by these recent developments. If we want that spirit to survive we must become aware of the implications of these developments, and then recover and act upon the principles of freedom so well articulated by early American leaders.

Four Essays on Liberty

Four Essays on Liberty PDF

Author: Isaiah Berlin

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 1969

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13:

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"Political Ideas in the Twentieth Century", Historical Inevitability", "Two Concepts of Liberty", "John Stuart Mill and the Ends of Life". These four essays deal with the various aspects of individual liberty, including the distinction between positive and negative liberty and the necessity of rejecting determinism if we wish to keep hold of the notions of human responsibility and freedom.

Liberty of Contract

Liberty of Contract PDF

Author: David N. Mayer

Publisher: Cato Institute

Published: 2011-01-16

Total Pages: 202

ISBN-13: 1935308408

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Examines the history of the liberty of contract and shows how this right has been continuously diminished by court decisions and by our country's growing regulatory and welfare state.

Liberty and the Wall of Separation Between Church and State

Liberty and the Wall of Separation Between Church and State PDF

Author: Robert J. O'Keefe

Publisher: Pageturner, Press and Media

Published: 2021-03-11

Total Pages: 196

ISBN-13: 9781649086990

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What does it take to bring political liberty into reality and what is required to sustain it? Is religion a necessity or a hindrance? Is religious neutrality in public affairs possible? What do means of persuasion and the knowledge of good and evil have to do with political liberty? Do the well-considered views of the authors of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution on the separation between church and state have any relevance today? Such questions are bypassed in the pragmatic expediencies of politics. But they cannot be overlooked if the American experiment in liberty is to be understood and prolonged. Liberty and the Wall surveys these and other aspects of political liberty as it is enjoyed in the United States. It distills from history the essentials of natural right and consent of the governed, and the necessary virtues of self-reliance and self-governance. It analyzes the conditions and events that led to a formal separation between political rule and religion for the first time in history. The transition from government over people to people over government and the principles embedded within the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are explored. Insights are drawn from the Federalist-Anti-Federalist and Lincoln-Douglas debates. The danger of utopian ideals and the place of appeal to authority higher than both people and government receive due attention. Liberty and the Wall steers clear of conventional, superficial controversies over religious symbols, speech, and practices on public property and in public institutions. Neither is there any pretense about easy fixes to public controversies. Far more germane to the subject are underlying conflicts of values and senses of the good and just in matters of public interest, as opposing metaphysical views contend for political supremacy below the level of popular awareness. Politics is infused with values and concepts of right. The determination of the valuable, the right, and the just is far more the commanding question.

Liberty and the Wall of Separation Between Church and State - Workbook

Liberty and the Wall of Separation Between Church and State - Workbook PDF

Author: Robert J O'Keefe

Publisher:

Published: 2021-03-11

Total Pages: 50

ISBN-13: 9781649087010

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What does it take to bring political liberty into reality and what is required to sustain it? Is religion a necessity or a hindrance? Is religious neutrality in public affairs possible? What do means of persuasion and the knowledge of good and evil have to do with political liberty? Do the well-considered views of the authors of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution on the separation between church and state have any relevance today? Such questions are bypassed in the pragmatic expediencies of politics. But they cannot be overlooked if the American experiment in liberty is to be understood and prolonged. Liberty and the Wall surveys these and other aspects of political liberty as it is enjoyed in the United States. It distills from history the essentials of natural right and consent of the governed, and the necessary virtues of self-reliance and self-governance. It analyzes the conditions and events that led to a formal separation between political rule and religion for the first time in history. The transition from government over people to people over government and the principles embedded within the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are explored. Insights are drawn from the Federalist-Anti-Federalist and Lincoln-Douglas debates. The danger of utopian ideals and the place of appeal to authority higher than both people and government receive due attention. Liberty and the Wall steers clear of conventional, superficial controversies over religious symbols, speech, and practices on public property and in public institutions. Neither is there any pretense about easy fixes to public controversies. Far more germane to the subject are underlying conflicts of values and senses of the good and just in matters of public interest, as opposing metaphysical views contend for political supremacy below the level of popular awareness. Politics is infused with values and concepts of right. The determination of the valuable, the right, and the just is far more the commanding question.