The philosophical concept of negative liberty is the absence of coercion from others. In this negative sense, one is considered free to the extent to which no person or person interferes with his or her activity. According to Thomas Hobbes, for example, "a free man is he that... is not hindered to do what he hath the will to do." Coercion is the practice of compelling a person to act by employing threat of force. ... Thomas Hobbes: detail from a portrait by John Michael Wright (National Portrait Gallery, London) Thomas Hobbes (April 5, 1588 – December 4, 1679) was a noted English political philosopher, most famous for his book Leviathan (1651). ...

The distinction between negative liberty and positive liberty was drawn by Isaiah Berlin in his lecture entitled "Two Concepts of Liberty." According to Berlin, the distinction is deeply embedded in the political tradition: the notion of negative liberty being associated most strongly with the classical English political philosophers (e.g. Locke, Hobbes, Smith, and Mill) and positive liberty with thinkers such as Hegel, Rousseau, Herder, and Marx. Positive liberty, an idea that was first expressed and analyzed as a separate conception of liberty by John Stuart Mill but most notably described by Isaiah Berlin, refers to the ability to act to fulfill ones own potential, as opposed to negative liberty, which refers to freedom from the... Sir Isaiah Berlin Sir Isaiah Berlin (June 6, 1909 – November 5, 1997) was a political philosopher and historian of ideas, regarded as one of the leading liberal thinkers of the century. ... Two Concepts of Liberty was the inaugural lecture delivered by Isaiah Berlin before the University of Oxford on October 31, 1958. ... John Locke John Locke (August 29, 1632–October 28, 1704) was a 17th-century philosopher concerned primarily with society and epistemology. ... Thomas Hobbes: detail from a portrait by John Michael Wright (National Portrait Gallery, London) Thomas Hobbes (April 5, 1588 – December 4, 1679) was a noted English political philosopher, most famous for his book Leviathan (1651). ... Adam Smith Adam Smith (Baptised June 5, 1723 – July 17, 1790) was a Scottish political economist and moral philosopher. ... John Stuart Mill (May 20, 1806 – May 8, 1873), aka JS Mill, an English philosopher and political economist, was an influential liberal thinker of the 19th century. ... G.W.F. Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (August 27, 1770 - November 14, 1831) was a German philosopher born in Stuttgart, Württemberg, in present-day southwest Germany. ... Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean Jacques Rousseau (June 28, 1712 – July 2, 1778) was a Franco-Swiss philosopher, writer, political theorist, and self-taught composer of The Age of Enlightenment. ... Johann Gottfried Herder Johann Gottfried von Herder (August 25, 1744 – December 18, 1803), German poet, critic, theologian, and philosopher, is best known for his influence on authors such as Goethe and the role he played in the development of the larger cultural movement known as romanticism Biography Born in Mohrungen... Karl Marx Karl Marx (May 5, 1818 Trier, Germany – March 14, 1883 London, UK) was an influential German philosopher, political economist, and revolutionary organizer of the International Workingmens Association. ...

This usage of negative liberty has several noteworthy aspects. First, negative liberty defines a realm or "zone" of freedom. In Berlin's words, "liberty in the negative sense involves an answer to the question 'What is the area within which the subject -- a person or group of persons -- is or should be left to do or be what he is able to do or be, without interference by other persons.'" Some philosophers have disagreed on the extent of this realm while accepting the main point that liberty defines that realm in which one may act unobstructed by others. Second, the restriction implicit in negative liberty is imposed by person or persons and not due to causes such as nature, lack, or incapacity. Helvetius expresses this point clearly: "The free man is the man who is not in irons, nor imprisoned in a gaol, nor terrorized like a slave by the fear of punishment...it is not lack of freedom not to fly like an eagle or swim like a whale." Claude Adrien Helvétius (January 1715 - December 26, 1771) was a French philosopher and litterateur. ...

The dichotomy of positive and negative liberty is considered specious by political philosophers in traditions such as libertarian socialism, social democracy, and marxism. Some of them argue that positive and negative liberty are indistinguishable in practice, while others claim that one kind of liberty cannot exist independently of the other. Libertarian socialism is any one of a group of political philosophies dedicated to opposing coercive forms of authority and social hierarchy, in particular the institutions of capitalism and the state. ... Social democracy is a political ideology emerging in the late 19th and early 20th centuries from supporters of Marxism who believed that the transition to a socialist society could be achieved through democratic evolutionary rather than revolutionary means. ... Marxism - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Negative liberty and authority: Hobbes and Locke

One might ask, "How is men's desire for liberty to be reconciled with the need for authority?" Its answer by various thinkers provides a fault line for understanding their view on liberty but also a cluster of intersecting concepts such as authority, equality, and justice.

Hobbes and Locke give two influential and representative solutions to this question. As a starting point, both agree that a line must be drawn and a space sharply delineated where each individual can act unhindered according to their tastes, desires, and inclinations. This zone defines the sacrosanct space of personal liberty. But, they believe no society is possible without some authority, where the intended purpose of authority is to prevent collisions among the different ends and, thereby, to demarcate the boundaries where each person's zone of liberty begins and ends. Where Hobbes and Locke differ is the extent of the zone. Hobbes, who took a rather dim view of human nature, averred that a strong authority was needed to curb men's intrinsically wild, savage, and corrupt impulses. Only a powerful authority can keep at bay the permanent and always looming threat of anarchy. Locke believed, on the other hand, that men on the whole are more good than wicked and, accordingly, the area for individual liberty can be left rather large. Thomas Hobbes: detail from a portrait by John Michael Wright (National Portrait Gallery, London) Thomas Hobbes (April 5, 1588 – December 4, 1679) was a noted English political philosopher, most famous for his book Leviathan (1651). ... John Locke John Locke (August 29, 1632–October 28, 1704) was a 17th-century philosopher concerned primarily with society and epistemology. ...

Negative liberty in various thinkers

John Jay in Federalist Papers No. 2: "Nothing is more certain than the indispensable necessity of Government, and it is equally undeniable, that whenever and however it is instituted, the people must cede to it some of their natural rights, in order to vest it with requisite powers." Jay's meaning would be better expressed by substituting "negative liberty" in place of "natural rights", for the argument here is that the power or authority of a legitimate government derives in part from our accepting restrictions on negative liberty. John Jay, first Chief Justice of the United States Oil painting by Gilbert Stuart, 1794 John Jay (December 12, 1745 – May 17, 1829) was an American politician, statesman, revolutionary, diplomat and jurist. ... Title page of an early Federalist compilation. ...

Thomas Paine in Common Sense distinguishes between society and government almost exactly with the distinction between positive and negative liberty: "Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former promotes our happiness positively by uniting our affections, the latter negatively by restraining our vices." Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (29 January 1737–8 June 1809), intellectual, scholar, and idealist, is widely recognized as one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. ... The term common sense (or as an adjective, commonsense) describes beliefs or propositions that seem, to most people, to be prudent and of sound judgment, without dependence upon esoteric knowledge. ...

Bibliography

• Isaiah Berlin: Four Essays on Liberty (especially Two Concepts of Liberty)
• Isaiah Berlin: Freedom and its Betrayal

See also

• Negative right
• Positive liberty
• Positive right

A Negative right is a right, either moral or decreed by law, to not be subject to an action of another (usually abuse or coercion) so that restraint is incumbent upon another, as opposed to a positive right which is a right to be provided with something by the positive... Positive liberty, an idea that was first expressed and analyzed as a separate conception of liberty by John Stuart Mill but most notably described by Isaiah Berlin, refers to the ability to act to fulfill ones own potential, as opposed to negative liberty, which refers to freedom from the... A Positive right is a right, either moral or decreed by law, to be provided with something so that it is incumbent upon another to act, as opposed to a negative right which is a right to not be subject to the action of another. ...

External link

• Positive and Negative Liberty from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy