Liberty Notes in English Class 11 Political Science Chapter-2 Book-2

 

We find many examples in human history  when more powerful groups enslaved and exploited some people or communities.  But history also gives us inspiring examples of great struggles against these powerful groups.  All these struggles were to achieve freedom .

 

What is this freedom? 

• Were people willing to sacrifice their lives for freedom? The struggle of people to achieve independence reflected the desire to control their own lives and to have the opportunity to freely express their desires and actions. Not only individuals but societies also value their freedom and want their culture and future to be protected.

• Given the diverse interests and aspirations of people, any social life needs certain rules and laws. It may be that these rules require that some limits be set on individual freedom, but it is believed that these limits free us from insecurity and provide conditions in which we can develop ourselves.

The ideal of freedom 

Nelson Mandela  

• Nelson Mandela was from South Africa . 

• He fought against racial discrimination .

• 'Long Walk to Freedom' is his autobiography .

• In his autobiography he writes about his personal struggle against South Africa's apartheid regime . 

• There is talk about  the people's resistance against the segregationist policies of the white man's rule,  the humiliation of the black people of South Africa, and police brutality.

• For this freedom, Mandela  spent 28 years of his life in the darkness of prison cells. 

Aung San Suu Kyi

• Aung San Suu Kyi is from Myanmar 

• His book is 'Freedom from Fear'

• Aung San Suu Kyi placed under house arrest in Myanmar 

• There was military rule in Myanmar, her husband was suffering from cancer but she was not allowed to meet her husband.

• Aung San Suu Kyi linked her freedom to the freedom of her country's people

• You cannot live a dignified human life without being free from fear. 

What is freedom?

• Freedom is the absence of external restrictions on a person. 

• If there is no external control or pressure on a person and he can take his own decisions without depending on anyone, then that person can be considered independent. 

• Freedom also means expanding a person's ability to self-express and develop his or her inner potential. 

• Freedom in this sense is a condition in which people can develop their creativity and abilities.

Some justifiable social restrictions?

• No person living in society can expect a complete absence of all kinds of limitations and restrictions. 

• In such a situation it becomes necessary to decide which social restrictions are justified and which are not, which can be accepted and which should be removed. 

• So far we have defined freedom as the absence of constraints. To be free means to minimise the social constraints that restrict our ability to make free choices. 

In other words, freedom also has a positive aspect.

• For there to be freedom, society must elaborate those things which enable an individual, group, community or nation to determine its own destiny, direction and form. 

• Freedom in this sense promotes the full development of an individual's creativity, sensitivity and abilities. 

• This development can be in any field like sports, science, arts, music or exploration.

• A free society is one in which an individual is able to promote his interests under minimum restrictions. 

• Freedom is considered valuable because it allows us to make decisions and choices. 

• It is only because of freedom that a person is able to use his discretion and power of decision.

Why do we need restrictions?

• We cannot live in a world without restrictions. We need some restrictions, otherwise society will fall into chaos.

• There may be disputes among people, their ambitions may clash, they may be competitive for limited resources.

• Therefore, it is necessary for every society to adopt some method to control violence and resolve disputes.

• As long as we respect each other's views and do not try to impose our views on others we will be able to live with freedom and with minimum restrictions.

• To build such a society, some restrictions are also necessary. At least it is necessary that we should be ready to accept differences of thought, belief and opinion.

• Sometimes we may feel that our strongest beliefs require us to oppose anyone who rejects our ideas or holds a different opinion.

• The important question is to identify which restrictions on freedom are necessary and justified, and which are not.

Harm principle 

"The only purpose for which interference with the freedom of action, individually or collectively, can be justified is self-defense. The only purpose for which the justifiable use of force against the will of a member of civilized society can be to prevent harm to another."

According to J.S. Mill there are two types of actions 

• 'Self-relationship'

• 'Relationship

Self-relation - which affects only the person doing the work. 

Interrelationship - in which the work done has an impact on other external persons as well. 

If those actions are causing major harm to others, then in such a situation the state can impose restrictions on them.

positive and negative freedom 

Freedom has two dimensions – 

Positive liberty and negative liberty

Negative freedom

• There should be as little restriction as possible. 

• Because restrictions curtail personal freedom. 

• Therefore, there should be freedom to work as per one's wish and there should not be any kind of restriction on the person's actions.

• Supporters are John Stuart Mill and F.A. Hayek etc.

Positive freedom

• A system under rules and laws through which humans can develop themselves.

• If the state wants to achieve the goal of public welfare then restrictions are necessary. 

• Man lives in society, his actions affect the freedom of other people. 

• Therefore its life must be regulated by bonds.

• Presence of logical constraints.

• The supporters are T.H. Green and Prof. Isaah Berlin.

Freedom of expression 

The issue of freedom of expression is linked to the narrowest zone of non-interference.

John Stuart Mill has argued in his book 'On Liberty' that freedom of expression should be available even to those whose ideas seem wrong and misleading in today's conditions.

Four arguments:-

1) No idea is completely wrong. There is some element of truth in it.

2) Truth does not arise by itself but arises from the conflict of opposing ideas.

3) When an idea is opposed by an idea, only then its credibility is proven.

4) What is true today may not always be true. Sometimes ideas that are not acceptable today may be valuable in the future.

Many times restrictions on freedom of expression become a short term solution to the problem and fulfill the immediate demand but it is very dangerous from the viewpoint of long term possibilities of freedom in the society.