International Relations

Umer Qasim BBA 3 Section I

Assignment # 3

Q1) Discuss the way traditional liberalism, neo-liberalism and post-liberalism are different? To be able to actually tell, how the aforementioned theories differ from one another, I would like to briefly explain the three. By definition: Traditional Liberalism is defined as
a political philosophy based on belief in progress, the essential goodness of the human race, and the autonomy of the individual and standing for the protection of political and civil liberties; specifically : such a philosophy that considers government as a crucial instrument for amelioration of social inequities (as those involving race, gender, or class) Neo-Liberalism is defined as

Neo-liberalism is commonly thought of as a political philosophy giving priority to individual freedom and the right to private property. It is not, however, the simple and homogeneous philosophy it might appear to be. It ranges over a wide expanse in regard to ethical foundations as well as to normative conclusions. At the one end of the line is anarcho -liberalism, arguing for a complete laissez-faire, and the abolishment of all government. At the other end is classical liberalism, demanding a government with functions exceeding those of the so-called nightwatchman state Post-Liberalism is defined as Etymologically speaking, you can guess that post-liberalism has to mean something that arises after liberalism. Post liberalism argues that states have to cooperate with one another for the sake of security. This is a very wide departure from classical liberal thought as it ends up becoming more about state sovereignty. Now that we have a brief understanding of traditional, neo and post liberalism we can start with the differences between them. Traditional liberalism is a philosophy that places great emphasis on human freedom, progress and equality between all men. It also believes in the goodness of the human race and believed that wars/conflicts should be avoided by men. State was considered to be a vital part in traditional liberalism, as it believed that state should be responsible for its citizens at most of the levels. State was considered to be a tool which would provide social equality to its citizens.