MODERN LIBERALISM

Concepts
 LIBERALISM
● FREEDOM: freedom from (-) and freedom to (+)
● Deeper justification of political rule
○ Contrasts justification of medieval period (divine
rights of king, absolutism, hierarchy, obedience
etc)
● Freedom & equality
● Man: originary tendency of power
○ Priori condition: man is free
○ Priori assumption: man wants freedom
 LIBERALISM
● SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION
○ Scientism: systematic way of knowing &
understanding things
■ Elements: falsifiability, replicability,
predictability, generalizability
■ Scientific method
● AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT
○ “Philosophical”, reason as new criteria explaining
reality
2 TYPES OF DEVELOPMENT OF LIBERALISM AS PT
● PHILOSOPHICAL TRADITION: after age of
enlightenment
○ SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY- source,
justification, legitimacy of political power
■ General will: state advance interest of people
■ State sovereignty: state protect right to life,
liberty, property and tame brutish tendencies of
man
■ 3 elements (*refer to table)
ELEMENTS Thomas John Locke (1632 Jean-Jacques
*not included in table: object of Hobbes (1588- - 1704) Rosseau (1712 -
agreement or point of 1679) 1778)
preference/contract (consensus)

View of man or contracting inherently bad neither good nor inherently good
parties (rational being’s human bad (they can steal
nature) property to
survive)
state of nature/characterization solitary, poor, chaotic but neither very primitive (no
of originary condition (prior to nasty, brutish, good nor bad law or morality)
order) and short

view on power power usage of power outcome of

power
2 TYPES OF DEVELOPMENT OF LIBERALISM AS PT
● POLITICAL TRADITION: emerged after philo trad
○ Centrality of rights and limitation of power
○ Economization of the social: mercantilism- controls trade &
commerce
○ Middle class wanted more free political space
○ Liberal democratic theory: problems of state control, political
rights
■ 1875 Universal Suffrage in France: separation of power,
federalists papers to limit power
■ Electoral politics: Tocqueville’s distribution of power
● MODERN: happening now, cannot be calculated
An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of
the Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith
(1776)

Concepts
CHAPTER 1 & 2 OF SMITH
DIVISION OF LABOUR: harness productive tendencies

EXCHANGE: way to get what we want

MARKET: space of exchange

MONEY: medium of exchange

CAPITAL: what you own so you can purchase more, most privatized!

PROPERTY: forms- land, labor, capital

WEALTH: ability to purchase, grows when there is an accumulation of capital (chapter 2)

PRICES: amount from property- profit, rent, wage

PROFIT: produced from your capital, with wealth

CHAPTER 4 OF SMITH
● MERCANTILISM: wealth from accumulation of
money
● AGRICULTURALISM: wealth comes from land
● INVISIBLE HAND
● EQUILIBRIUM: tendency governing human
tendencies & economic relations
*No longer makes sense due to capitalism and
privatization
An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations

THEA
THEOREIN
THEOROS
THEORIA
THEOREMA
LIBERALIZATION OF THE
MARKET
THEA
● Used to be restriction in the market
● But due to capitalism emerging and
development of technologies, it made the
market into this autonomous space
● Making man beyond control of the state
 PRIVATIZATION OF THE
PROPERTY
THEOREIN
● Used to be the king who owned everything
before
● Man used nature and converted it into
something that could be privatized
ADAM SMITH (1723-1790)
THEOROS
● University of Glasgow professor of moral
philosophy
○ Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759):man civil &
fair
● Wrote Wealth of Nations (1776)
○ science of economics: managing scarce
resources and economy due to emerging
capitalists
○ Economic liberalism: framework to understand
capitalism in economic and political order
 WHY PRIVATIZE? (MODIFICATION,
ALLOCATION, UTILIZATION,
PRODUCTION)

THEOROS
● Modify- (public to private ownership) to adapt to new
conditions that have emerged
● Allocate- (distribute for particular purpose) uses
division of labor or specialization
● Maximization- (great amount) so no things will be
wasted
● Utilization- (effective use) stuff are limited
● Production- (turn into new) to have more
● Privatize because there is a space that can be
reconfigured
 SYSTEMATIZATION OF
NATURE
THEOREMA
● Combination of modification, allocation,
utilization and production
5 CHARACTERISTICS

PUBLIC
CA
SM
SPOR
CHANGE
PUBLIC: capitalist society
CA: difference
SM: full control (absolute monarchy entrep tendencies)
SPOR: Invisible hand (state shouldn’t intervene, let
market do its own affairs as the role of the govt is for
expenses and infra projects)
CHANGE: lessen state’s role
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE
PRINCIPLE OF MORALS AND
LEGISLATIONS(1823) by JEREMY
BENTHAM
Concepts
● Chapter 1: Principle of Utility
○ Used to approximate balance between duty
and desire
○ Science in Restriction of individual tendencies
● Chapter 3: four sanctions/sources of pain and
pleasure
○ physical, political, moral religious
● Chapter 4: Science of Legislation
○ Science (follows scientism) of social conditions/problems of
society
○ Avoids prejudices and false judgments of people
○ Highlights symbiotic relationship between liberty and authority
■ the authority passes and makes laws that must be reflective
and complement the interest (duty and desire) of the
individuals and aid them happiness
■ How?
● Know source or spring of action (liberty)
● Know distinction between what we do and what we ought
to do (don’t just do for sake of following tradition)
CONFORMITY
● angry at the idea of conforming just for the sake of it
● Conforming/ not conforming: sense of utility
○ Nonconformity is a mere annexation (takeover) of pure utility
■ If it is pleasurable, we conform and if not, we do not conform
so if want people to follow or conform to a lw, make sure it
reflects their interests
○ the problem in modernity is that it is always punishment
○ Penal laws must be altered
■ instead of punishing (for those who did bad), why not give
incentives or rewards to those who do good (ex: tax
exemption, 13th month pay...etc)
An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation.

THEA
THEOREIN
THEOROS
THEORIA
THEOREMA
 INDIVIDUALIZATION OF
LIBERAL TENDENCIES
THEA
● Individual: monolithic entity
● Generalizing tendency: one person’s
characteristics applied to all
● Cannot just assume individual understanding
of people to all
● Singularization: only one view or
understanding of humanity
 HOMOGENIZATION
THEOREIN
● Society individualized so becoming one and the same
or similar = destruction/ negation of differences and
distinctions but bentham wants plurality
● accuses the indolence of modern law as it relies too
much on customs and traditions
○ Traditions aggregate irrationalities that pretend to
be rational in governing the public
○ Test and review laws if applicable, even challenge
it and change!
JEREMY BENTHAM (1748- 1832)

THEOROS
● London, Founder of utilitarianism: Claims best effect of
goodness or wrongness of actions through consequences
(pleasure/good or pain/bad)
○ Effects of particular action
■ Hedonism: what is pleasurable is always good
■ Quantity: totality/ sum of all things matter
■ quality/ maximization: greatest good of all things
● (1789) An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and
Legislations
○ Determine interest of people by assuming what is
pleasurable to the greatest number which helps you
understand how to govern a society
 WHY HOMOGENIZE? WHY
GENERALIZE?
THEORIA
● Because of the assumption to generalize
condition and that there are similarities
● MULTIPLICATION: you can use it many times,
28 times the effect (because you assume
experience of one can be multiplied or
experienced by other individuals
 AGGREGATION OF DIFFERING
INTERESTS
THEOREMA
● Aggregation: combine several separate elements,
sort classify conditions
● Connected to principle of utility- We can determine
the interest of the general public by balancing
what is pleasurable and what is necessary (duty
vs desire, liberty vs authority)
5 CHARACTERISTICS

PUBLIC
CA
SM
SPOR
CHANGE
 5 CHARACTERISTICS
PUBLIC: liberal (back to political)

CA: anachronism (no longer applicable, we should modernize!)

SM: misappropriation (taking something for its own use) of

individualization

SPOR: rationalization of liberal tendencies (aggregate form of

rationalization or reason not conflation/joining into one)

CHANGE: utilitarianism
 ON LIBERTY(1859)
CONCEPTS
● seeks to offer new method to understand social realities
● CHAPTER 1: Understands relationship between authority and freedom
● Emphasizes problematizing relationship between individual and social, as
society has a tendency to restrict individual by imposing general view)
● Emerging problem of laws that favour the majority/“tyranny of the majority”
which coerces individual to conform and results in individualization of social
norms
● CHAPTER 4: Highlights freedoms not mentioned before (allowing an
individual to pursue his interests as long as not harming others)
■ Freedom of expression, freedom of opinion, freedom of
self-determination, freedom of association, free speech
● Role of government- make sure no one harms interest of the people
● CHAPTER 5: Individual responsible if she or he hurts others, but not
responsible if it only concerns himself/herself
On Liberty

THEA
THEOREIN
THEOROS
THEORIA
THEOREMA
 TYRANIZATION OF THE
SOCIAL
THEA
● Bentham’s theorema was the aggregation of differing interests which was
the wrong interpretation of the individual- James Mill and Bentham saw
utilitarianism as benefitting society, but Mill noticed the tyranization of the
social or of the many
● concerned with the growing problems about how an individual should live in
a society - From individual to the social, the social becoming one (mob)
● This is the issue of modern liberalism- the many individuals aggregated are
now imposing what kind of way of life we should subscribe to, the kind of
thinking and doing things we should adopt
● Accuses modern England of restricting or sacrificing individual rights at the
for the happiness of the many (unlike bentham)
LIMITATION OF THE
INDIVIDUAL
THEOREIN
● This is an unjust condition, tyranization is not a liberal society
because there are limitations being such as values
● It is a senseless part of the tyrannical rule and makes use of
oppression, restriction and violence to rule
● In a free society, freedoms should not be violated
● There is a pursuit of the individual which can overlap with the
pursuit of the social so why hurt the individual
● liberty in liberalism was silenced, the promise setting free of
the individual was not done because it was too focused on the
state
 JOHN STUART MILL
THEOROS
● Son of James Mill, UCL, teacher was Bentham, lord rector of University of
St. Andrews, member of the parliament at Westminster
● Wrote On Liberty 1859, as he laments the emerging problem of liberty that
time such as having laws that only favour the majority
● Liberty in modern liberal democratic societies, in which the democratic
regimes can repress people’s freedom
● Advocated for representative democracy
○ Representative Government (1861)
■ Gov’t ruled by qualified & skilled and must preserve order & gain
progress
■ Representative gov’t- not gov’t itself, but how people can control
government
● Rule of representatives of the people (elected)
● Rule by experts (appointed/ bureaucracy people)
WHY LIMITATION? (IMPOSITION/INHIBITION/
PROHIBITION, SUBJECTION, REPRESENTATION,
PROTECTION,) WHY INDIVIDUALIZE? WHY
HOMOGENIZE

THEORIA
● Why limit the individual freedom? Why hold back?
○ It is no longer the individual as you put entity under, you must
allow representation to happen, the individual must be
represented by many and many must represent the individual
● Why individualize? Why homogenize?
○ Because the many is in control so do this to the individual
(individuals aren’t the center of the universe)
● What kind of freedom cannot be multiplied?
○ Dualism between authority and liberty different
■ authority and liberty of bentham is that it can be aggregated
■ authority and liberty of Mill cannot be aggregated
RECTIFICATION

THEOREMA
● Aggregation: combine several separate elements, sort classify
conditions
● Change in the individual
● Rectification- making it correct/ setting things right (proposes
changes in state or government)
● Experienced by many people can be experienced by the
individual (deductive)
● Ind has last say (inductive)
5 CHARACTERISTICS

PUBLIC
CA
SM
SPOR
CHANGE
 5 CHARACTERISTICS
PUBLIC: liberal

CA: representation, protection

SM: imposition, limitation

SPOR: protective government (freedom of expression or opinion is

most imp freedom without those, there would be no individual
freedom and the individual will be subject to the social)

CHANGE: rectification
ANARCHY, STATE, AND UTOPIA BY ROBERT
NOZICK

THE THEORY OF JUSTICE BY JOHN RAWLS

CONCEPTS
 CONCENTRATION OF
WEALTH OF POWER
(THE POLITICAL)
THEA
● phenomenon of state and space of governance overlaps with
space of market
● wealth and power has an excessive amount present which
leads it to being concentrated ( all connected to neoliberal set
up)
● this pertains to small number of people enjoying so much
wealth or power (capitalism says equal opportunity & equal
access but what we are witnessing is only few people enjoying
wealth or power)
 AMALGAMATION
THEOREIN
● Causes concentration as it is the gathering,
incorporation, combination, fusion etc..
● Somewhat a monopoly/ systematized thing (such
as conglomerations)= redistribute wealth to each
other leading to the infinite accumulation of wealth
○ Compare to small scale businesses who don’t
share resources and don’t talk to each other
*It is not a state intervention, as in a neoliberal set up
it has become your job or task
 JOHN RAWLS AND
ROBERT NOZICK
THEOROS
● RAWLS
○ Social Liberal & Communitarianism
■ wanted to side with socialism
○ 1971: The Theory of Justice - tried to ask question of inequality
● NOZICK
○ Conservative Liberal & Libertarian
■ he made use of works of Stuart Mill and was more traditional
○ 1974: Anarchy, State, and Utopia- fought Rawls
● Both Princeton
● They have almost the same issue, same thea, same theorein,
theoria but separate in theorema and different in critical abstraction
 WHY AMALGAMATE?
THEORIA
● to protect their own interests
● more power and resources = more powerful
 REDISTRIBUTION OF
WEALTH
THEOREMA
● REDISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH is where there is a separation
between rawls and nozick)
○ RAWLS: REDISTRIBUTIVE JUSTICE
■ Assumes new character of the state willing to redistribute
wealth using veil of ignorance, where eradicate biases by not
assuming what is the best outcome in policymaking, you will
only know state is okay by participating in policy making or
legislature
■ End goal: happy all not just you
■ strong state being responsible will entail veil of ignorance and
is social for all
● REDISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH is where there is a separation
between rawls and nozick)
○ NOZICK: ENTITLEMENT THEORY
■ Redistributive state is too assuming
■ There must be more protection for the weak
■ There is an individual case for us all
● if someone us poor, there is an injustice that must be
eradicated- the abuse of the system of labor, and identify
which one (ex: problem in job due to labor laws)
● Basically rectification: correct the wrong along the way
and that is what the law and policy making, and state
does! It is to address the problems in the process
5 CHARACTERISTICS

PUBLIC
CA
SM
SPOR
CHANGE
 5 CHARACTERISTICS

PUBLIC: liberal society

CA: distinction between individual and collective
SM: concentration of how system works, too market
oriented
SPOR: redistribution
CHANGE: redistributive justice vs entitlement theory