46 CBSE Term II Political Science Class 11th

Part B : Political Theory

CHAPTER 01

Liberty
In this Chapter...
l Meaning of Liberty
l Meaning of Freedom
l Significance of Freedom
l Harm Principle of Freedom
l Meaning of Negative and Positive Liberty
l Freedom of Expression

Liberty is the quality of being free whereas, freedom Meaning of Freedom

signifies absence of restrictions and constraints on
individual actions. The struggle for freedom represents
the desire of people to be in control of their own lives
and to have the opportunity to express themselves
freely through their choices and activities.
Meaning of Liberty
The state of being free within society from authority’s
control or harsh constraints on one’s way of life,
behaviour or political opinions is known as liberty. As a
result, liberty implies the responsible exercise of
freedom under the rule of law without endangering the
liberty of others. Because peace and order in society
can only be maintained by imposing some limits on
people, liberty does not imply the absence of all limits.
Only a positive social context allows for the enjoyment
of liberty.
Importance of Liberty
l
It allows people to pursue their goals. Liberty is
uncommon, valuable, never guaranteed and always
at risk. If it is not advanced and defended, it can be
lost in a single generation.
l
To be completely human, we must all be free to make
our own decisions and manage our own lives as long
as we allow others to do the same.
l
Liberty is effective. Nothing else even comes close to
producing the level of interpersonal collaboration,
invention and wealth creation that permits human
beings to prosper.
Freedom is a political term which allows an individual to make
choices and to exercise independent judgement. In other words, an
individual could be considered free if he/she is not subject to
external controls; if he/she is able to make independent decisions
and act in an autonomous way. One aspect of freedom i.e. the
absence of external constraints and the another important aspect is
existence of conditions in which people can freely express
themselves and develop their talents.
External constraints means the force or compulsions under which
an individual has to work and absence of external constraints means
that an individual should not be forced to perform any action which
he/she does not want to perform.
A free society is one in which all of its members are able to reach
their full potential with the least number of social restrictions.
Freedom is admired because it encourages us to make our own
decisions and use our judgement. It allows people to use their
reasoning and decision-making abilities.
Liberty vs Freedom
Liberty and freedom are two different concepts. The fundamental
difference between the two can be understand by their meaning.
Liberty comes from the Latin word libertatem which means
condition of a freeman. While freedom come from the English word
freodom which means state of free will.
Liberty is power to act and express oneself according to one’s will
while freedom is the power to decide one’s action. Freedom is
more concrete concept than liberty which is more associated with
an individual’s connection with the state rather than with other
individuals and circumstances.