CLASSICAL LIBERALISM Classical Liberalism Is a Political Ideology and a Branch of Liberalism Which Advocates Civil Liberties

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Classical liberalism is a political ideology and a branch of liberalism which advocates civil liberties under the rule of law with an emphasis on economic freedom. As a term, classical liberalism has often been applied in retrospect to distinguish earlier 19th-century liberalism from social liberalism. Classical liberalism began with the ideas of John Locke, whose theory of rights and labour theory of value were the foundation stones on which Adam Smith, David Ricardo, John Stuart Mill etc. developed their ideas of liberalism. The philosophy became popular as a response to the Industrial Revolution and urbanization in the 19th century in Europe and the United States. It developed in the early 19th century, as an idea related to economic liberalism. It focused on a psychological understanding of individual liberty, the theories of natural law and utilitarianism, and a belief in progress.

Classical liberalism" is the ideology advocating private property, an uninterupted market economy, the rule of law, constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion and of the press, and international peace based on free trade. Up until around 1900, this ideology was generally known simply as liberalism. The qualifying "classical" is now usually necessary, because liberalism has come to be associated with wide-ranging interferences with private property and the market for attaining egalitarian goals. This new version of liberalism is sometimes designated as "social," liberalism.

Classical lliberalism must be understood as a doctrine and movement that grew out of a distinctive culture and particular historical circumstances. The historical circumstances were the confrontation of the free institutions and values inherited from the Middle Ages with the dominance of the absolutist state of the 16th and 17th centuries. The struggle of the Dutch against the absolutism of the Spanish Habsburgs manifested basically liberal traits: the rule of law, including especially a firm adherence to property rights; de facto religious toleration; considerable freedom of expression; and a central government of severely limited powers. The astonishing success of the Dutch experiment exerted a "demonstration effect" on European social thought and, gradually, political practice. This was even truer of the later example of England. Throughout the history of liberalism, theory and social reality interacted, with theory stimulated and refined through the observation of practice, and attempts to reform practice undertaken with reference to more relevant theory.

FUNDAMENTAL ESSENCE OF CLASSICAL LIBERALISM

• Classical liberalism was a political philosophy and ideology which put primary emphasis on the maximum possible freedom of the individual by limiting the power of the government. Classical liberals gave priority to individuals’ freedom in social, political and economic life. They recognized that different people’s freedoms may conflict, but emphasized that the government would act to ensure coherence between individual freedom and the concept of common good, using minimum possible force. They gave a new definition of legitimacy of government which according to them would lie in individuals’ consent.

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• It advocated civil liberties with a limited government under the boundaries of rule of law. Liberalism as a political and moral philosophy centered itself on two main principles - these are individualism and liberty. According to them, only rule of law could ensure maximum freedom to maximum number of people. This in turn would allow individuals to reach their full potential , which in return would ensure full development of the state. John Gray identified four essential elements of liberalism. These were individualism, egalitarianism, universalism and meliorism and the foundation on which these principles spring forth was ‘rule of law’. Governments should themselves be bound by the rule of law, and justice should be dispensed according to accepted principles and processes. Egalitarianism, in the sense promoted by classical liberals, meant equal opportunity, though not in a positive way, i.e., there would be no whereby redistribution of wealth; contrarily, it would entail legal and political equality. Universalism implied that the moral principles that follow liberalism would apply to all human beings, irrespective of place, race, religion and culture. Meliorism indicated the belief that human beings have the

capacity to have a better life and their social and political institutions can become better. The Glorious Revolution of 1688 paved the way for the concept of the rule of law, designed to protect individual freedom and defend landed property and this rule of law was assumed to be the only mechanism capable to implement other three principles of liberalism. Primarily, John Locke, the theorist of Glorious Revolution in 1688 in England focused on the importance of the functional concept of rule of law in its ability to protect the rights of the individuals.

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• John Locke (1632 – 1704) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "Father of Liberalism, as he was the pioneer in advocating the necessity of the rights of the individual for his independent existence. Locke said that an individual must have the rights to life, liberty and property and in case of violation of these rights individuals must be allowed to resist the government. The American revolutionary thinker Thomas Paine (1737–1809) , a classical liberalist argued, citizens would be within their rights to overthrow any government that broke this trust. Thus liberalism originated much earlier to the period of industrial revolution in 19th century Europe, as is claimed by the political scientists. Individualism values individuality as it entails a number of rights. According to John Locke these three rights are above the discretion of the state and exist pre- politically, in the state of nature. Individuals entered into a treaty to form a state and government to secure his rights and therefore if these rights are infringed individuals can use his firth right, i.e., the right to resist the government. A classical liberal would view these rights in a formal or legal way. According to the classical liberal thinkers, these rights should be negative in the sense that the state should not infringe these rights, and not positive in the sense that individuals should be allowed to do whatever they want as long as they do not harm anyone else, neither violates the spirit of common good. There is a legitimate role for the state to protect individuals from each other, enabling each to enjoy his rights and this enhances the utility of the state in the lives of the individuals.

Despite Smith's resolute recognition of the importance and value of labor and of laborers, classical liberals selectively criticized labour's group rights being pursued at the expense

of individual rights, while they accepted corporations' rights, which led to inequality of bargaining power.

Classical liberals asserted that rights are of a negative nature and therefore stipulate that other individuals and governments are to refrain from interfering with the free market. Contrarily, social liberals asserted that individuals have positive rights, such as the right to vote, the right to an education, the right to health care and the right to a living wage. For society to guarantee positive rights, it requires taxation.

John Stuart Mill asserted a different view in respect to the rights of the individuals, as he preached that state cannot intervene in individual’s self regarding conduct, whereas state has every right and duty to regulate individual’s other regarding conducts to ensure the compliance of individual’s rights and common good of the society.

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• Classical liberalism developed its basic ideas in order to nurture the aggression of free market. Drawing on ideas of Adam Smith, classical liberals believed that it is in the common interest that all individuals be able to secure their own economic self-interest. They were critical of what would come to be the idea of the welfare state as interfering in a free market. Classical liberals argued that individuals should be free to obtain work from the highest-paying employers while the profit motive would ensure that products that people desired were produced at prices they would pay. In a free market, both labor and capital would receive the greatest possible reward while production would be organized efficiently to meet consumer demand. In economics, classical liberals believe that wealth is not created by governments, but by the mutual cooperation of free individuals. Prosperity comes through free individuals inventing, creating, saving, investing and, ultimately, exchanging goods and services voluntarily, for mutual gain – the spontaneous order of the free-market economy

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• Classical liberals disagree about the exact role of the state, but generally wish to limit the use of force, whether by individuals or governments. They call for states that are small and kept in bounds by known rules. The main problem of politics is not how to choose

leaders, but how to restrain them once they have power. Classical liberalism believes in limiting the role of the government in the lives of the individuals as individuals can make their own decisions; the government is required to act with a laissez-faire approach to society. Individuals are not to be controlled either for the state's benefit or for their own benefit. Any kind of state interference other than that pertaining to upholding the claim of common good is detrimental to the interest and benefit of the individual and of the society at large. Classical liberals believe that liberty should not be confused with competition or Social Darwinism, but that it involves the freedom of people to cooperate for progress by maximizing his ability. Freedom of expression, of movement, liberty to assemble, to form associations and freedom of conscience must be ensured Liberalism allows government intervention only to ensure common good.

Classical liberals agreed with Thomas Hobbes that the purpose of government should be to minimize conflict between individuals that prevailed in a state of nature. These beliefs led to the passage of the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, which limited the provision of social assistance, based on the idea that market is the mechanism that most efficiently leads to wealth. Adopting Thomas Robert Malthus's population theory, they saw poor urban conditions as inevitable, believed that population growth would outstrip food production and thus regarded that consequence desirable because starvation would help limit population growth. The classical liberalism opposed any income or wealth redistribution, believing it would be dissipated by the lowest orders. Since late 19th century, this liberal state gradually turned into ‘administrative state’ designed to protect individual from internal disturbance and external aggression in order to facilitate individual’s freedom of conduct.

Protection of private property, free market and belief in laissez-faire economic policy were the basic principles of classical liberalism.

Classical liberals argued that a state should be limited to the following functions:

➢ A government to protect individual rights and to provide services that cannot be provided in a free market. ➢ A common national defense to provide protection against foreign invaders.

➢ Laws to provide protection for citizens from wrongs committed against them by other citizens, which included protection of private property, enforcement of contracts and common law. ➢ Building and maintaining public institutions. ➢ Public works that included a stable currency, standard weights and measures and building and upkeep of roads, canals, harbors, railways, communications and postal services etc. ➢ The state should strive to promote free trade and world peace. Several liberals, including Smith and Cobden, argued that the free exchange of goods between nations could lead to world peace. Erik Scholars like Montesquieu, Adam Smith, Richard Cobden, Norman Angell, and Richard Rosecrance have long speculated that free markets have the potential to free states from the looming prospect of recurrent warfare. The classical liberals advocated policies to increase liberty and prosperity. They sought to empower the commercial class politically and to abolish royal charters, monopolies, and the protectionist policies of mercantilism so as to encourage entrepreneurship and increase productive efficiency. They also expected democracy and laissez-faire economics to diminish the frequency of war. In The Wealth of Nations, Smith argued that as societies progressed from hunter gatherers to industrial societies the spoils of war would rise, but that the costs of war would rise further and thus making war difficult and costly for industrialised nations. The belief that free trade would promote peace was widely shared by English liberals of the 19th and early 20th century, like the economist John Maynard Keynes (1883–1946).

CONCLUSION Classical liberalism is not a fixed ideology, but a spectrum of views on social, economic and political issues, grounded in a belief in freedom and an aversion to the coercion of one individual by another. It has enjoyed a revival in recent decades, but now faces new and urgent questions – such as the freedom that should be extended to groups who wish to destroy freedom.

Classical liberalism can be traced back to AngloSaxon England and beyond, but derives largely from the ideas of thinkers such as John Locke (1632–1704), Adam Smith (1723–90) and the Founding Fathers of the United States. In recent times, it has been refreshed by scholars such as F. A. Hayek (1899–1992) and Milton Friedman (1912–2006). Different classical liberals advance different arguments for freedom and tolerance. Sometimes freedom is considered as a good in itself, sometimes the idea of natural rights enjoyed by all individuals are taken as the foundation of the concept of freedom. Some liberals hold that authority over others stems solely from their agreement to submit to laws, embodied in a social contract. A number of liberals argue that state is a natural organism which makes social and political freedom available to all and makes lives of everyone better off. Regarding tolerance classical liberals also advance different arguments; many believe that forcing people to do things against their will is unwanted and undesirable, others see it in terms of common good with . Minimum coercion. Classical liberals feel that the primacy of the individual over the collective and herein lies the justification of tolerance. Maximization of the welfare of society as a whole, however, is the prime concern of the classical liberals specially since late 19th century.

There are lots of contradictions also.

i. Locke believed that government has no legitimate powers beyond the powers given by the individuals; and the whole purpose of government is to expand freedom, not to restrict it. At the same time, he reiterated that revolution is a last resort, though individuals have the right to resist in case of violation of their freedom.

ii. Classical liberals believe that representative and constitutional democracy is the best means for keeping our legislators accountable to the people. Elections are not so much about choosing good leaders, but removing bad ones. The better informed and more vigilant the electorate, the better they work. J.S. Mill concluded in his Considerations on Representative Government (1861) that “the ideal type of a perfect government” would be both democratic and representative. He argued

for elected representative government and thus raised voice for the cause of democracy. Mill suggested that representative bodies such as parliaments and senates are best suited to be places of public debate on the various opinions held by the population and to act as watchdogs of the professionals who create and administer laws and policy. but simultaneously he defends two fundamental principles: extensive participation by citizens and enlightened competence of rulers. Some readers have concluded that he is an elitist democrat while others count him as an earlier participatory democrat. In one section he appeared to defend plural voting, in which more competent citizens are given extra votes; he later repudiated this view. But in chapter 3 he argued for the value of participation by all citizens. He believed that the incompetence of the masses could eventually be overcome if they were given a chance to take part in politics, especially at the local level. This confusion was criticized by many later liberals. iii. All classical liberals were sceptical of state power and those at the more libertarian end of the spectrum believed the state is more likely to damage our freedom than to promote it. The early classical liberals believed that government existed solely to protect people’s rights, and to expand their opportunity and freedom by minimising coercion and allowing peace to reign. Critics say that this perception would remain stuck in anarchy. Modern governments go well beyond the scope and power that the early classical liberals were willing to grant. Even classical liberals today often accept that the state might have useful functions beyond mere laissez faire roles. Milton Friedman famously advocated a negative income tax to redistribute income from rich to poor, and state-funded education vouchers, designed to give poor families’ access to education. Adam Smith himself thought that, in addition to protecting the public through defence and the justice system, government should provide public works such as bridges and harbours and contribute to public education.

By the end of the 19th century, the principles of classical liberalism were being increasingly challenged by downturns in economic growth, a growing perception of the evils of poverty, unemployment and relative deprivation present within modern industrial cities and the agitation of organized labour. The ideal of the self-made individual, who through hard work and talent could make his or her place in the world, seemed increasingly implausible. A major political reaction against the changes introduced by industrialisation and laissez-faire capitalism came from conservatives concerned about social balance, although socialism later became a more important force for change and reform. Some Victorian writers—including Charles Dickens, Thomas Carlyle and Matthew Arnold—became early influential critics of social injustice. The New Liberalism or social liberalism movement emerged about 1900 in Britain.

Compiled by Dr. Soma Ghosh Principal Hiralal Mazumdar Memorial College for Women Dakshineswar