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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
look mom, an old white cisgender straight dude from history who’s NOT a piece of shit!
JSM is fucking awesome. He was campaigning for women’s rights in the 1800s; was fiercely in love with his wife, Harriet (whom he prefaces all his work with dedication to her contributions and brilliance - they wrote On Liberty... together); and he was a liberal thinker who believed in universal education, birth control, and equality between the sexes. More men like JSM please.
JSM is fucking awesome. He was campaigning for women’s rights in the 1800s; was fiercely in love with his wife, Harriet (whom he prefaces all his work with dedication to her contributions and brilliance - they wrote On Liberty... together); and he was a liberal thinker who believed in universal education, birth control, and equality between the sexes. More men like JSM please.
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
“If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.”
― John Stuart Mill, On Liberty
― John Stuart Mill, On Liberty
Mill argues that “wrong opinions and practices gradually yield to fact and argument; but facts and arguments, to produce any effect on the mind, must be brought before it”. Guess he didn't foresee a world of constant fake news where "facts" are just disregarded, eh? I also just don't buy that the populous is both smart enough to eventually understand the right side of any argument they hear, but too dumb to band together to make the best laws if given power. If the majority is so “mediocre”, how can they possible create a society where liberty is well-preserved by the law?
My biggest problem with the book was the half-assed argument that government intervention is justified for self-destructive behaviours, because self-destructive behaviours have consequences to society even if they’re done in private. Mill even admits that he doesn't know how to solve for this! Should have left this essay in "drafts".
My biggest problem with the book was the half-assed argument that government intervention is justified for self-destructive behaviours, because self-destructive behaviours have consequences to society even if they’re done in private. Mill even admits that he doesn't know how to solve for this! Should have left this essay in "drafts".
challenging
medium-paced
I like how Mills reasons his way step by step to his conclusions. It’s crazy to think about how it must have been to be writing about how important liberty is in a time when it wasn’t so widely existent.
Mill is a real one for making this easily digestible for a modern audience.
informative
reflective
While this is an old book, it is one of the pillars of the utilitarianism approach.
The book itself presents like an ethics manual. Some things can be traced back to the foundational principles of religions. It puts a lot of eyes on how the individual behaves and how it should commit toward the welfare state.
It is a must to understand how the way we navigate in society was predicted and planned almost 200 years ago. Like you or not, some of the movements we see in societies today (from the capital to the state), are just implementations of a form of this speech.
The book itself presents like an ethics manual. Some things can be traced back to the foundational principles of religions. It puts a lot of eyes on how the individual behaves and how it should commit toward the welfare state.
It is a must to understand how the way we navigate in society was predicted and planned almost 200 years ago. Like you or not, some of the movements we see in societies today (from the capital to the state), are just implementations of a form of this speech.
Such a great essay. I particularly enjoyed the first three chapters, where I had very little to disagree with. I think that his writing on free speech and the liberty of thought and discussion should be taught in public schools (though Mill would disagree). He details why it is important for one to pursue knowledge not only from those one agrees with, but why it is paramount to study those one disagrees with. His philosophical arguments are thorough in these sections, and I argue, very valuable.
The last two chapters I experienced a lot more conflict with his ideas. Particularly the chapter on applications. I don't think he has enough justification for many of his statements, and at times he out right disagrees with himself.
This is an enlightening read, and should be read by anyone interested in philosophy, government, and history. It's a vastly vital work for how much it has influenced modern day western society. Modern Libertarians would have much to agree with here, but also tempered with many limitations on the thoughts Mill would support.
The LibriVox reading was generally very good. The first reader was clear, professional, and obviously experienced. The second reader was too quiet and often spoke too quickly. The last reader a bit too fast in his pace. It was a bit hard to transition from the first two readers, who had British accents, to the third who had an American accent. I did enjoy the audio book, but next time I read this book I'll use the printed page. I think the subject would be better communicated this way.
The last two chapters I experienced a lot more conflict with his ideas. Particularly the chapter on applications. I don't think he has enough justification for many of his statements, and at times he out right disagrees with himself.
This is an enlightening read, and should be read by anyone interested in philosophy, government, and history. It's a vastly vital work for how much it has influenced modern day western society. Modern Libertarians would have much to agree with here, but also tempered with many limitations on the thoughts Mill would support.
The LibriVox reading was generally very good. The first reader was clear, professional, and obviously experienced. The second reader was too quiet and often spoke too quickly. The last reader a bit too fast in his pace. It was a bit hard to transition from the first two readers, who had British accents, to the third who had an American accent. I did enjoy the audio book, but next time I read this book I'll use the printed page. I think the subject would be better communicated this way.