Freedom Theory (Expanded Version of Four Freedoms)

Author: Berlin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-12-01
Features: The core program of this book is Berlin's theory of value pluralism, which is his belief that the values people pursue are not only diverse but sometimes incompatible; this applies not only to the level of entire cultures or value systems but also to the values of a specific culture or individual. A fundamental characteristic of various monolithic religious and political ideologies is their claim that there is only one path to salvation, only one correct way of life, and only one true value structure. It is precisely this assertion, when expressed with fervor, that leads to fundamentalism, persecution, and intolerance. Pluralism seeks to prevent this danger. It is the source of liberalism and tolerance: not merely the unstable tolerance of waiting for errors to be corrected, but rather the profound and enduring tolerance that accepts and welcomes life views fundamentally different from our own. Four Essays is also filled with other brilliant insights, including the devastating critique of historicism and determinism in The Inevitability of History, the famous discussion of "positive" and "negative" freedom in Two Concepts of Liberty, and the examination of the inherent tensions in Mill's thought in Mill and the Subjection of Women. It is one of the most rich and humane works I have ever read, and it justly deserves its status as a classic.