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liberalism key terms - Coggle Diagram
liberalism key terms
authority: the right to exercise power - for traditional conservatives, authority is placed in the natural elite such as the monarchy and aristocracy as they have the necessary wealth, status and power to govern for the benefit of others.
state of nature: a concept used by political thinkers such as Locke and Hobbes to describe the hypothetical original characteristics of humankind and how people related to each other in a time before states and organised govts.
social contract: a contract between the individual and the govt, where if the individual agrees with the state to obey its laws and, in return, the state improves their life. the state is invalid either if there is no consent or if it fails to improve the individuals situation - classical liberalism +john locke.
constitutionalism: the govt must be legally limited in its powers by a constitution in order to protect freedom - classical liberalism + john locke.
fiduciary power: the state holds its power in trust and must act in the interests of and for the benefit of the people, otherwise the social contract is invalid - classical liberalism + john locke see this in the legislature.
formal equality: equality under the law, as well as the principle that every individual is entitled to equal treatment in society - wollstonecraft argued for this.
individualism: a belief in the importance of the individual over the collective within political thought, which is central to liberalism, and also that the individual exists prior to the society - wollstonecraft believed this would come with formal equality for women.
tradition: a form of knowledge passed down through generations as customs and habits that enable us to know what to do in order to achieve a task successfully and so provide security and stability in an uncertain world.
divine right of kings: the idea is that a monarch is not subject to earthly authority but instead gains the right to rule directly from God - wollstonecraft believed this was formed by tradition.
republicanism: a republic is a political system without a monarch, which emphasises citizens taking an active role in public and political life - wollstonecraft argued for this.
individuality: mill passionately believed in the uniqueness of each individual, and freedom was needed to allow them to constantly develop their distinctive talents, characteristics and knowledge.
hedonism: the idea that happiness is the ultimate good and that it can be measured as pleasure and the absence of pain. this idea is based on the quantity of pleasure rather than quality - mill criticised the hedonism of early liberal thinking and placed great importance on education instead.
developmental individuality: focuses on personal growth and flourishing rather than just self-satisfaction, emphasising what the individual can become rather than what they are.
positive freedom: freedom to rather that freedom from. the individual is free to develop, flourish and pursue their own version of the good life.
equality of opportunity: the concept that all individuals have equal life chances so inequalities by society must be tackled. if there is equality of opportunity, inequalities which result from differences in ability, creativity and hard work are acceptable.
discrimination: the differential treatment of groups or individuals, such as women, without any real justification for doing this based purely on the differences between them.
positive discrimination: state intervention to give preferential treatment to particular groups in society to tackle historical discrimination and inequalities in society. affirmative action in the usa.
foundational equality: all humans are born morally equal and so are deserving of equal natural rights, which are enshrined in law as legal and political rights - rawls reaffirmed this idea.
veil of ignorance: when designing a just society, the individual does not know what place they will hold in society; their gender, race, sexual orientation, abilities or state of health - rawls used this in his discussion of establishing a new society.
distributive justice: social inequality is permissible if there is equality of opportunity and the inequalities in society are only justifiable if they are to the greatest benefit of the least well-off - this would be a consequence of a rational individual choosing a rational society.
meritocracy: social position and economic reward are based on talent and hard work. where there is equality of opportunity, there is an incentive to work hard and realise your talent, ensuring everyone gets what they deserve and that society is led by the most talented.