Liberalism And Freedom Essay -- essays research papers fc

Liberalism and FreedomLiberalism is a force that has produced change from the birth of thisnation to the politics of today. Liberal tenets have been a basis of thoughtand natural action in American politics since well before the signing of theConstitution. Certainly, liberalism has had to transform in order to rebriny alegitimate force throughout the years. When considering this transformation, 1 may ask whether or not the ideas and goals of classical liberalism have beenlost in the conversion into modern liberalism. In order to answer this, theareas of freedom, the role of government, humans nature, and the function of lawshould be addressed. While this may not be a complete register of change inliberalism, research into these subjects can try strong indications towardthe nature of this transition. Objectively, the evidence suggests that many ofthe ideas of classical liberalism were either abandoned or changed fundamentallywhen America entered the modern era.Freedom  &nb sp  The idea of freedom has been a paramount concern of liberalismthroughout history. Consider the classical ideas of religious freedom, the dependable to resist and the inherent right of every individual to be independent.These were some of the main focuses of classical liberalism in early America.     On religious freedom, seventeenth century minister Roger Williams wrote"All Civill States with their Officers of justice in theirrespectiveconstitutions and administrations are proved essentially Civill, and hence not judges, governours or defendours of the spirituall or christianstate and worship." (Volkomer, 50)This quote is notable because it illustrates the early liberal ideas ofreligious freedom by stating that government officials have no right to passjudgment on religious practices. In furtherance of his views, Williams foundeda colony at Plymouth and contributed to the development of religious tolerancein the wise world. Religious toleranc e meant that a nation with multiplereligions need no longer mean a country with internal strife and civil riot due to intolerance (Volkomer, 1969). The notion of religious open-mindedness helped pave the way for individual independence by suggesting thatpeople were able to determine their own fundamental beliefs.     The right of ind... ...rrelationship helpsensure liberalisms role in bringing about change in the future.BibliographyAn Introduction to the Philosophy of Law newfangled Haven Yale University Press, 1922The Relevence of Liberalism Westview Press, Boulder, CO. 1978Beiner, Ronald Whats the Matter With Liberlism? University of California Press,Los Angeles, 1992De Tocqueville, Alexis land in America Penguin Books Ltd., Middlesex,England, 1984Dewey, John Liberalism and Social Action New York G.P. Putnams Sons, 1935Dietze, Gottfried Liberalism Proper and Proper Liberalism, Johns HopkinsUniversity Press, Baltimore, 1985Dunbar, Leslie Reclaiming Liberalism , WW Norton & Co., New York, 1991Gerstle, Gary "The Protean Nature of American Liberalism", The American diachronic Review, October 10, 1994, American Historical Review, New York, NewYorkKotkin, Joel "Whats Wrong With Liberalism" The American Enterprise, Jan/Feb1996 Vol. 7 No. 1, The American Enterprise Institute, Washington D.C.Lewis, Edward A History Of Political Thought, The Macmillan Co., New York, 1937Mansfield, Harvey The Spirit of Liberalism, Harvard University Press, Cambridge,1978