Liberalism Has Proved The Most Successful Ideology. Do You Agree Give

Liberalism Has Proved The Most Successful Ideology. Do You Agree Give Liberalism Has Proved The Most Successful Ideology. Do You Agree Give Reasons For Your Answer â€" Essay Example > LIBERALISM HAS PROVED THE MOST SUCCESSFUL IDEOLOGYDo you agree? Give reasons for your answerINTRODUCTIONA number of scholars hold the view that liberalism as political ideology has left a significant impact on our society and has successfully maintained its political hegemony. Liberalism is the notable promoter of individual liberty (Liberalism and Freedom, 2001) and aims to establish a liberal society where individuals and private institutions are not dominated by the state. The concept of individual freedom is essential to liberalism. It is in this light that this paper will expound on the cases in which liberalism, for the most part, is the leading philosophy, especially in the West. This paper will also discuss the principles and values of liberalism. Various views on liberalism will be studied, which deal with the concepts of human nature, equality, society, the role of government, market and the change process. There are different kinds of liberalism such as classical libera lism, neo-liberalism and social liberalism. This paper will critically evaluate problems in the classical liberalism and neo-liberalism and will examine the background and reasons for the success of liberalism as a political ideology and system. PRINCIPLES AND VALUES OF LIBERALISMAccording to liberalism, the individual, as opposed to the community, is the core of social structure. The individual is given importance and provided protection and enough power to exercise his/her own power to meet his/her own socio-economic objectives. The efforts and programs in society are geared towards the enhancement and empowerment of individuals. Liberalism also has high regard for freedom or liberty. According to von Mises (2007), circumstances as they are in the current world present with an insufficient concept of the connotation as well as the likely achievements of liberalism and capitalism in complete blossom. The goal of politics in liberalism is to secure maximum freedom for individuals i n society, and the government plays a key role in this process. Its main role is to protect liberty and individuals’ freedom. In general, liberal governments have been successful in the protection of individuals and the encouragement of the exercise of freedom. There are few societies which have not been able to achieve this but striving for liberty is ongoing in the majority of these areas. LIBERALISM VIEWSOn Human NatureIt can be noted that in liberalism the overall view is optimistic. Liberalism is hopeful, positive and confident in its outlook. Liberalism considers individuals as self-interested and independent utility maximisers. Individuals as rational human beings have the capacity to progress, develop and lead society to a more advanced stage in history. Continuous growth is achieved through the efforts exerted by individuals in society. Nussbaum and Sen (1993) advocate the capabilities approach to well-being. Capability enhancement endeavours further to groom individual s. On EqualityWith regard to the view on equality, liberalism secures legal equality within the boundaries of its political hegemony. Individuals as citizens of a liberal state have equal legal rights and are not discriminated on the basis of colour, language, faith, gender and ethnicity. They will have the same treatment under the law. Individuals have equal worth but unequal talents and skills. The unequal talents and skills differentiate one from the other. The individual’s position in society reflects the individual talent and effort.