Minggu-4 Libaralisme.ppt

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Yuwanto, Ph.D.



What does liberalism mean?

„a liberal is a man who believes in

liberty‟- Maurice Cranston



Liberalism is the belief in the importance of

liberty and equal rights. Most liberals supportsuch fundamental ideas as constitutions,liberal democracy, free and fair elections,human rights, capitalism, free trade, and the

freedom of religion



Term „Liberalism‟ first used and only became

associated with a clear set of ideas andbeliefs in the 19th century

However, origins of liberalism as a force date

back to revolutionary England and France(17th and 18th centuries) and even to someextent earlier



Origins:

Political Liberalism

John Locke (1632-1704) employed the concept ofnatural rights and the social contract to arguethat the rule of law should replace absolutism ingovernment, that rulers were subject to the

consent of the governed, and that privateindividuals had a fundamental right to life,liberty, and property.

Economic Liberalism

Adam Smith (1723-1790) an intellectual and„Father of Capitalism‟ who said: “Humans motivated by self interest and they should be freeto pursue profits.”



1689 – published two works:◦ Two Treatises of Government – outlined

the case for representative andconstitutional government

◦ A Letter Concerning Toleration – defendedthe right of religious dissent

Both now seen as classic works of liberalism



Two Treatises on Government establishedtwo fundamental liberal ideas: economicliberty, meaning the right to have and use

property, and intellectual liberty, includingfreedom of conscience (“Natural Rights”), which he expounded in A Letter ConcerningToleration



Locke developed further the earlier idea ofnatural rights. Property was more importantthan the right to participate in governmentand public decision-making: he did notendorse democracy, because he feared that

giving power to the people would erode thesanctity of private property.Nevertheless, the idea of natural rights played a key

role in providing the ideological justification for the (atleast moderately democratizing) American revolution

and French revolution.



Adam Smith expounded the theory thatindividuals could structure both moral and

economic life without direction for thepurposes of the state, and indeed, that thenations which would be the strongest wouldbe those that left individuals free to follow

their own initiative.



Adam Smith advocated the end of feudaland mercantile regulations, state grantedmonopolies and patents, and is seen as thepromulgator of a principal of "laissez-faire"

or "let [it] act" -- minimal governmentintervention in the functioning of the freemarket.



Adam Smith developed a theory of

motivation that tried to reconcile humanself-interestedness with unregulated socialorder (mainly done in The Theory of MoralSentiments , 1759). His most famous work,The Wealth of Nations (1776), tried toexplain how an unregulated market wouldnaturally regulate itself via aggregated

individual decisions.



The revolutionaries in the American

Revolution (1776) and the FrenchRevolution (1789) used liberal philosophy to

justify the armed overthrow of tyrannicalrule.The nineteenth century saw liberal governments

established in nations across Europe, LatinAmerica, and North America.



Liberal ideas spread even further in the

20th century, when liberal democraciestriumphed in two world wars and survivedmajor ideological challenges from fascismand communism.Conservatism, fundamentalism, and military

dictatorship remain powerful opponents ofliberalism.



Today, liberals are organized politically on

all major continents. They have played adecisive role in the growth of republics, thespread of civil rights and civil liberties, theestablishment of the modern welfare state,

the institution of religious toleration andreligious freedom, and the development ofglobalization.Political scientist Alan Wolfe wrote, "liberalism is

the answer for which modernity is the question."



So, liberalism has come to be associated

with the collapse of feudalism acrossEurope and the subsequent rise ofcapitalism.



The new middle classes began to challengethe old privileged aristocracy. With it camechallenge to the fundamental ideas of thedivine right of kings, absolutism and

monarchy itself. This new class pushed towards systems of

constitutional (and later representative)government.



As the new class pushed for free trade and

free markets, liberalism became more closelyassociated with capitalism.Liberalism became the dominant ideology of

Western countries – to the extent that they are

know as liberal democraciesBut how closely tied is liberalism to capitalism?



Friedrich August von Hayek

Economic freedom (i.e. free trade & private

ownership of property) is a guarantee ofpolitical freedom. Civil liberties are onlypossible under capitalism.There can be no freedom of press if the

instruments of printing are under governmentcontrol, no freedom of assembly if the neededrooms are so controlled, no freedom ofmovement if the means of transport are a

government monopoly.



Karl MarxLiberal ideas reflect the economic interestsof the ruling classes – i.e. are designed toprotect their wealth.



Argued that over time, Liberalism has

moved from a set of revolutionary ideas to aset of conservative ideas.

After their assault on the aristocracy and

acquisition of private property, middleclasses have sought to preserve their gains.



As industrialisation increased throughout

the nineteenth century, divisions developedamongst liberals and two different strandsof liberalism emerged:

1. Classical liberalism – traditional laissez-faire

2. Modern liberalism – greater emphasis ongovernment intervention, particularly in

areas such as welfare



Is there a distinct set of ideas associated

with Liberalism?1. THE INDIVIDUAL

How important is the individual in our societytoday?

Little in the way of individual identity in feudaltime

There is debate within Liberalism with regard tohow important the individual should be

(Egotistical Individualism versus EthicalIndividualism )



• Egotistical Individualism• Classical liberal viewpoint

• Emphasis on self-interest and self-reliance

• Ethical Individualism•

Modern liberal viewpoint• Society should be constructed in a way that can

benefit the individual

• Modern liberals place the „flourishing‟ of theindividual above self interest.



◦ Individual freedom is a belief common toall liberals. However, there are a number

of different position that liberals haveadopted on the issue of freedom.

"Give me Liberty or give me Death! (Patrick Henry)



Early or classical liberals saw liberty as anatural right which gave individuals theopportunity to pursue their own lives.

Later or modern liberals see freedom asenabling people to flourish and develop theskills needed to achieve their potential inlife.



How much freedom should an individualhave?The libertarian position: John Stuart Mill („OnLiberty‟ 1859) distinguished between self-regarding and other-regarding actions. i.e. aperson should be free to do anything they wishproviding their actions do not impact on anotherperson‟s freedom.



Individual as primary unit of analysis Rational actor model Primary objective of economic activity is to

improve human welfare Role of the market Politics and economics operate in separate,

autonomous spheres Minimal role of state

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Minggu-4 Libaralisme.ppt