301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

The Transformation of Classical Liberalism

The transformation of liberalism is evidence that major ideologies pose questionable relevance in todays societies. The importance of understanding why and how liberalism has changed from its classical roots will reveal that, although there are remnants of its core values, it is almost impossible to prove that it has indeed been immutable. In fact, the word liberalism has been so skewed that its original concepts have merely fallen flat in its rejuvenation in todays age. This enquiry will analyze the contributing factors to this transformation, such as the criticism, historical impact, globalization, and democratization that liberalism has been subjected to. Before analysing liberalisms classical roots in order to compare it with todays modern form, it is important to note that this ideology is in a conventionally awkward position. It is

meant to be centered between its more extreme left and right oppositions. As Boyd writes: Too
many attempts are being made to convince men that they must choose between two alternatives: Communism and Fascism led by the Western World. In the writers opinion liberalism is a third and proper alternative. (Boyd A. p.295). However, throughout this analysis, one may draw the conclusion that it is indeed pulled between both oppositions and has had difficulty staying stationary. In fact, it may not be a completely proper alternative as the above writer argued due to its idealistic concepts and the recent emergence of an often criticized neoliberalism. Classical Origins First, one should be aware that liberal thought takes root in earlier times (Aristotle), but the most prominent era which created a wave of acknowledgement for liberalism was the Enlightenment. Historically, the Enlightenment inspired this political philosophy in order to break free from oppression and explore concepts of equality. It was viewed as an ideology which would free the people from oppressive governance. Of course, it was closely tied

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

(and inspired by) the French Revolution of 1789. Indeed, this era inspired many new thinkers and writers. The Enlightenment ideal of emancipation is connected with liberalism, which promises many admirable things, such as the emancipation of mankind. (Dazhi, p.457). The classical concept of liberalism is, in the most general sense, of freedom and equality. This, of course, is the core of the classical liberalism espoused by such early modern thinkers such as Locke, Montesquieu, Hume, and the American Founders. (Hegel and Liberalism, p. 837) Yet such vague romanticism gives little clarity to the specifics entailed and also provides reasoning for why it has been criticized in the past. John Locke, also known as the founding father of liberalism, wrote of three main ideas which provided the pillars of classical liberalism. Locke initially argued that men lived a perfectly adequate social life without any government in a state of nature, guided only by their reason. (Adams, p. 12). Critically, this posed a serious problem for disputes, criminals, and conflicts. Thus, Locke wrote that society must create a social contract with the government (which is formed by the consent of the governedperhaps a good reason why liberalism becomes so closely interlinked with democracy even though it didnt stem from democracy itself): In the social contract, isolated individuals come together and, based on their self-interest, choose to enter civil society in order to secure the life, liberty, and property which they possess only insecurely in the state of nature. (Hegel and Liberalism, p. 837). The government must thus fulfill such trust by intervening when conflict arises. Such promises have generally rendered positive contributions in society. For instance, in an era where property restrictions were placed upon citizens and limits were imposed upon gender, ethnicity, and religious associations, the notion that all men are equal and entitled to property was an

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

astonishing thought. The rest was set aside for the freemen of Carolina who would be barred from residence and landholding if they did not acknowledge a God and that God is publicly and solemnly to be worshipped. (Armitage, p. 609). The inspiration to provide authority to the people and focus on equality may have been another factor in link democracy so closely with liberalism. In fact, many argue that democracy and liberalism are ineffably tied together. However, there were still many problems that liberalism would face in the upcoming century and thus force it to change its core values in the future. Historical Change and Criticism While Liberalism resounded during the Enlightenment, the 20th century was nearly opposite. Nationalistic tendencies and a global desire for government involvement in the economy resulted from the 1930s Great Depression, thus forcing liberalism to become dormant and for the government to intervene in the economy. A laissez-faire market would not suffice for these times, and thus liberalism waned significantly. To add, liberalism was not fertile on the soil of war (especially World War II) as it promoted open markets and global trade. Not to mention, liberalism favors experimentation and, as it is stemmed from the Enlightenment and scientific ways of thinking, it allows itself to be subject to change: [Liberalism] must be creative; it involves experimentation; it recognizes certain basic rights of men; and it abides by majority rule. (Boyd A., 296). However, in the midst of war, states desire security and nationalist strength, not experimentation, with their governments political ideologies. Another contributing factor to a lull in liberalism was that its oppositions strengthened greatly on the right side of the political spectrumespecially as politics on the left declined (Grimes, p.26). However, even if socialism found itself in decay, liberalism was still subject to its critique-- Marxists often critiqued Liberalism for fostering a deeper class-based exploitation

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

associated with the capitalist system. (Helleiner, p. 688). Liberalism was now dormant in this period and subject to much criticism, thus contributing to its transformation (as it would be reinstated as the 1980s and 90s emerged). The criticisms which followed classical liberalisms ascent after the Enlightenment were a result of the sheer vagueness and lack of specificity of the founding concepts. Dormancy could thus also be attributed to the many criticisms and failures that liberalism faced up until this point, evident by the decreased number of periodicals spreading liberal ideas at the time (Adams, 12). As Yao Dazhi states: [] poetry and stories could express liberalism better than philosophy and politics. (Dazhi, page 461). Idealism is insecurity for societies who want guarantees that this government contract will protect their rights and allow them to live in safekeeping. For instance, the contract of trust between citizens and government was often criticized by the German philosopher, G.W.F Hegel. In Philosophy of Right, Hegel criticizes the individualism of liberalism and that the state should not exist serve to an individuals particular interest: Rather, the state is the objective embodiment of that universality which represents the destiny and deepest essence of human beings. For this reason, it is a mistake to view the state as being based on a contract. (Franco, 838). Indeed, Hegel viewed liberalism as too individualistic for not acknowledging of the collective support of society and could thus lead to weaker governance and lack of control over conflicts. To add, the notion of freedom and equality in itself was much too ambiguous and liberalisms transformation in this century was evidence of such. Hegel wrote that the freedom that the liberal state seeks to protect and enlarge is merely the freedom of the arbitrary will, the freedom to do as one pleases. (Franco, 839). Indeed, the amount of freedom that one receives is a

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

controversial topichow far can individual freedom extend until it breaches the boundaries of others? Galston defends Liberalism by attesting that freely chosen error is preferable to the coerced pursuit of the good. (Galston, p. 622). However, Adams makes a worthy and agreeable argument in the following: Individual freedom is a great liberal value, []. Yet, for all this, freedom and equality do not seem to fit together very well. Crudely put, if you let people be completely free, especially economically free, they will end up being unequal. (Adams, 25) Adams continues to explain how the situation is also vice versa: if people are completely equal, they will lose their freedom. How, then, does can a political party contend with both concepts written into this ideology simultaneously? As Adams has pointed out, it is impossible to have both freedom and equality without sacrifices. This is why liberalism has had difficulty staying in the awkward position of a center ideologythere are generally moderate left (equality) or moderately right (freedom) liberal parties rather than an extreme center. The Liberal Party of Canada, for instance, has borrowed ideologies from both sides of the political spectrum. It is often criticized for grasping for power at all costs of an ideology [] (Nicholls). For instance, on the Liberal Party of Canadas website there is a strong emphasis on environmental sustainability. This may be a direct result of the pressure of competition from the Green Party of Canada and, secondly, for Liberalism being criticized by the green social movement for: [] neglecting the importance of the ecological limits of human economic activity. They worry that free markets, as well as neoliberal thinkers in the IMF, World Bank, and WTO- often fail to price ecological constraints accurately. as well as [spreading] a global consumer culture

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

that they argue embodies a world view unconcerned with the ecological consequences of human economic activity. (Helleiner, p.691). Indeed, one may their new ideologies as a direct result of the criticisms that have arisen over the century. In an era where consideration for the environment has significantly increased, liberalism has had to question their original priorities in order to appease the masses and win elections. There are even further criticisms towards the Liberal Party of Canada, where specific news articles criticize Liberals for not having a proper policy (Cross). Aside from criticisms and a historical suffocation due to war, why else was such a taking place with liberalism? One may attribute it to its close ties with democratization across the globe. The new climate of democracy (competition between parties) had forced liberalism to become a mixing pot of political and philosophical ideas rather than a concentric paradigm in order to compete against other political parties and ideologies. Indeed, it seems that todays political parties are much more concerned with proper idea-borrowing than idea generating, and the traditional role that the liberalistic ideology played during the Enlightenment could arguably be entirely irrelevant in todays political sphere. Transformation, democratization and globalization The end of World War II brought about a rather conservative age and made room for the transformation of liberalism. As the cold war ended, liberalisms opposition became exhausted and modern liberalism (or neoliberalism, though this is generally referred to the economic changes in liberalism) began to flourish alongside the spread and empowerment of democracy. The alternatives to liberal capitalism and democracy had been exhausted, war itself perhaps superseded. [] Politically, the world would be a more intelligent place. (Hawthorn, 145). Another aspect in the transformation of liberalism was the decline of socialism after the Cold War. Grimes wrote that the money poured into

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defense spending during the Cold War encouraged an idea of postwar prosperity (and therefore halted socialism and the welfare state from progressing). How similar was this modern liberalism to its origins? While it was originally meant to be a rejuvenation of its 19th century predecessor, neoliberalism became more than willing to allow the state to become an active participant in the economy (Dag, 5). Indeed, it was much more of a

revision of liberalism rather than a reinstatement: Modern liberalism is, on the other hand,
characterised by a great willingness to let the state become an active participant in the economy. This has often issued in a pronounced tendency to regulate the marketplace, and to have state supply essential goods and services to everyone. (Thorson, 5) It is now acknowledged, then, in modern liberal ideology that a significant amount of government intervention in the economy and society is necessary in order to achieve its ideals. Modern liberalism states that the government is an instrument to redistribute wealth and power in order to create a society deemed to be more decent or equitable. (Dag, 5). There is also the fact that neoliberals have often cutback public spending on health care, child care, and education, which has prompted the feminist movement to severely critique neoliberalism for dramatically increasing the burden on the unpaid femaledominated sector of the economy. (Helleiner, 692). Heron writes that the neoliberalism ideology promotes its own brand of capitalist restructuring; that which we call globalization. (Heron, 89). With globalization becoming so significant to todays economic survival, it becomes obvious as to why liberalism had to take on a new form in order to even be considered as a face ideology for political parties. Beyond the economic criticisms and changes, however, one is left to wonder if the original philosophical ideals are still present. Some argue that modern liberalism still promotes liberty and equalityand to an extent, it does, and it is something that the Liberal Party of Canada often

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

boasts in their campaigns (i.e., their success in multiculturalism and making Canada bilingual and representing the minorities in Quebec, etc.). Indeed, the Liberal Party of Canadas website directly (and rather vaguely) states Liberals stand for equality of opportunity. (The Federal Liberal Agency of Canada). Yet Thorson states that it is difficult to have an exact paradigm for the political values that liberals share today, as it is a nationally subjective occurrence directly based on the competition they are facing from other political parties in a democracy (Thorson, 6). Instead, liberalism appears to take shape to its climate, and thus Wendy Brown heavily criticizes American neoliberalism for having no intrinsic commitment to political liberty. (Brown, 695). While this appears to be a harsh critique upon modern liberalism, there is plenty of evidence for her criticisms. First, the democratization that has rapidly spread in the 21st century has created a new slough of problems for liberalism. In fact, democracy has promoted itself under the banners of liberalism but in effect, ended up altering the original philosophical concepts. This is because democracy has become about media portrayal and vis--vis competition rather than aligning to a correct or specific political spectrum. Secondly, the liberties and equalities which liberalism intends to promote is questionable. As Taitu Heron writes: In many countries, [] is crowded by liberalization policies that accentuate and exacerbate asymmetric globalization and social inequalities between nations and among women, men, and children. (Heron, 86). Thus, one may question is if neoliberalism and democratization has actually done a significant deal of harm on a global scale. Local and national development, as Heron writes, appears to be disconnected and Brown argues that neoliberalism has actually intensified income disparities on a global scale (Brown, 693). If this is so, then the original concepts of liberalism that Locke wrote of are falsified, for a global consequence of inequality is much greater than the amount of equality achieved in a single nation.

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

There have been, however, arguments protesting that these consequences are simply a result of development on a global scale (Heron, 88). Indeed, this may be true, and perhaps we will see income disparities decrease and global equality come to a surface. If that were to happen in the future, then liberalism may have something to attest for in its classical philosophical pursuits. However, the importance of appeasing to this global capitalism has certainly increased, as well as the sudden importance of winning elections rather than abiding to a particular set of ideologies. Conclusion Liberalism is at a point where it poses questionable significance in todays political sphere. As modern liberalism has been subject to globalization and continues to shape itself depending on its political climate, the traditional core values have mostly vanished. Evidence has shown that Lockes original concepts of freedom and equality are idealistic and therefore, in order for liberalism to survive through its dormancy in the 20th century, it had to change its economic and social perspectives. Heron writes that ideologys power is within its manipulative capacity to obfuscate flawed social conditions, giving an illusory account of their rationale or function. (Heron, 88). Indeed, ideologies are portrayals made through the media that are now targeted to appeal to the masses and aid politicians in winning their place in government. Thus, even though there are remnants of liberalism in todays political parties, the commitment to them is shallow and generally geared towards a positive public image. Otherwise, the original school of thought which liberalism stems from has dissipated almost completely and may even cause questionable issues on a global scale.

301095489 Tia Rambaran Political Science 101w Assignment 2

Biography:
Adams , Ian.Political Ideology Today. 2nd ed. Great Britain: Manchester University Press, 2001. 10-36. eBook. <http://goo.gl/qJi3W>. Armitage, David. "Political Theory."Political Theory. 32 .5 (2004): 602-627. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/4148117>. Boyd A., Martin. "The Western Political Quarterly."Western Political Quarterly. 1.3 (1948): 295-297. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/442282>. Brown, Wendy. "American Nightmare: Neoliberalism."Political Theory. 34.6 (2006): 690-714. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/20452506>. Cross, Allison. "As Tories, NDP battle over policy, Liberals are criticized for not having any."

National Post18 09 2012, Web. 2 Dec. 2012.

<http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/09/18/as-tories-ndp-battle-over-policy-liberals-arecriticized-for-not-having-any/>. Dazhi , Yao.Postmodernist Liberalism: A critique of Richard Rortys Political Philosophy. China: Frontiers of Philosophy, 2008. Web. <http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/40343889>. Franco, Paul. "Hegel and Liberalism."Review of Politics. 59.4 (1997): 831-860. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/1408309>. Hawthorn, Geoffrey. "Review of International Studies."

Review of International Studies. 25.05 (1999): n. page. Web. 2 Dec. 2012.

<http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S026021059900145X>. Helleiner, Eric. "Review of International Political Economy."Review of International Political Economy.

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10.4 (2003): 685-696. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/4177483>. Galston, William. "The American Political Science Review."American Political Science Review. 76.3 (1982): 621-629. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. Grimes, Alan P. "Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science."Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 344. (1962): 25-34. Web. 2 Dec. 2012. <http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/1963735>. The Federal Liberal Agency of Canada. "What We Stand For."Liberal Party of Canada. Liberal Party of Canada, Web. 1 Dec 2012. <http://www.liberal.ca/what-we-stand-for/>. Nicholls, Gerry. "7 Reasons Why the Liberal Party is Doomed."

Huffington Post [Toronto] 13 10 11, Web. 2 Dec. 2012.

<http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/gerry-nicholls/liberal-party_b_1008833.html>. Thorson, Dag E.What is Neoliberalism?. Diss. University of Oslo, Web. <http://folk.uio.no/daget/What is Neo-Liberalism FINAL.pdf>.