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`On Liberty` by John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill 's On Liberty : Reflections

Over himself , over his own body and mind , the individual is sovereign ' - J .S . Mill

Introduction In his most famous work J .S . Mill delved deep into the concept of personal liberty - an important issue not only during his time , but in ours as well . Living in a traditional and deeply Protestant England Mill (as befitting his intellectual stature ) felt that the then-prevailing notions about freedom of thought and action were either completely erroneous or at least partially so . With his essay On

br Liberty , he sought to shed light on this all-important . The very first chapter of the essay goes straight into the heart of the matter Mill writes

The object of this Essay is to assert one very simple principle .That principle is , that the sole end for which mankind are warranted individually or collectively , in interfering with the liberty of action of any of their number , is self-protection . That the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community , against his will , is to prevent harm to others . His own good either physical or moral , is not a sufficient warrant .The only part of the conduct of any one , for which he is amenable to society , is that which concerns others . In the part which merely concerns himself , his independence is , of right , absolute The doctrine of a free and sovereign individual may seem passy to the modern observer - especially in the United States , where a great amount of latitude is given for personal thought and behavior . But in 1869 when the essay was published , Mill 's views were highly controversial His arguments for personal freedom were considered by some of his contemporaries as inherently subversive or even harmful to the government . The fact that Mill was often associated to the more radical political causes might have contributed to this perception Nevertheless , Mill 's ideas have survived the test of time and are in wide application today , especially in the United States and the European Union

What Constitutes Personal Freedom According to Mill , there are three general spheres over which the individual should be essentially free . First is the domain of consciousness - man must have liberty of thought and feeling absolute freedom of opinion and sentiment on all subjects , practical or speculative , scientific , moral , or theological ' Second is the domain of tastes and pursuits , or the freedom to create a life based on an individual 's personal preferences , as long as those preferences are not harmful to other people . The third personal freedom is that of association , or the ability to form groups for any given purpose , again provided that such purposes are not meant to harm

On the Freedom of Thought and Speech As a libertarian thinker , Mill felt that the individual was given less freedom than what he ought to have in relation to society . He felt that men , as a rule , governed themselves too much by customs and traditions...

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