Friday, April 20, 2012

Individuality and democracy......

"Freedom for all to act and think as their own powers enabled them, education to elicit and stimulate those powers, with the resultant diversity of minds - these were the real goals of the essay On Liberty.  Mill gave two cheers for democracy, for it alone could generate a responsible people.  He feared it because of the tyranny of the majority was able to flatten individuality as a steamroller does clods in a field.....Thus for Mill the great danger of democracy is self-defeat.  Public opinion demands conformity; conformity destroys individuality; and if individuality is destroyed, men of character and genius that democracy requires for its leadership are destroyed with it."
-Brand Blanshard,  Four Reasonable Men

thanks David

No comments:

Post a Comment