The Myth of Liberal Individualism

This powerful and interesting study challenges the traditional 'individualist' definition of liberal political ideas.

Colin Bird (Author)

9780521641289, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 13 May 1999

236 pages, 1 table
23.6 x 16 x 2.4 cm, 0.46 kg

"...this trenchant and intelligent book will justly reward the reader." Perspectives on Political Science

This book challenges us to look at liberal political ideas in a fresh way. Colin Bird examines the assumption, held both by liberals and by their strongest critics, that the values and ideals of the liberal political tradition cohere around a distinctively 'individualist' conception of the relation between individuals, society and the state. He concludes that the formula of 'liberal individualism' conceals fundamental conflicts between liberal views of these relations, conflicts that neither liberals nor their critics have adequately recognized. His interesting and provocative study develops a powerful criticism of the libertarian forms of 'liberal individualism' which have risen to prominence, and suggests that by taking this term for granted, theorists have exaggerated the unity and integrity of liberal political ideals and limited our perception of the issues they raise.

Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Individualism as a political ideal
2. Individualism as a theory
3. Public agency and conceptions of collectivity
4. Individualist distributions of liberty
5. Self-ownership and individual inviolability
6. The myth of liberal individualism
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Social & political philosophy [HPS]