PHIL 200 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: John Stuart Mill, Chinese Philosophy, False Dilemma
Document Summary
Resisting all or nothing: hobbes give stark choice. Give up freedom and liberty towards strong government or monarchy. State of nature depends on human nature. Central to chinese philosophy: perhaps we have been corrupted by law such that we require it. The social contract: term not used by hobbes, difficulties. Rulers should have consent to govern: socrates in crito. When offered escape he says no as he has profited off the social contract and must accept its laws. Lived during time when philosophers made realistic influence. We are all born free: in the social contract man was born free and everywhere he is in chains. Different countries gave different degrees of freedom: the general will . By freeing from chains he is in chains, as he will still be restricted. Question of how to guarantee: as long as government governs with our consent it"s a-ok. Harm princple and freedom of speech: fundamental principle of liberal forms of government.
