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Individual Rights and Freedoms

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Individual Rights and Freedoms
Social 30-1
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The source given discusses the prominence of the commonly debatable topic of individual rights and freedoms being neglected to fulfill the goals of the state. The source is clearly biased and against modern liberalism; in favor of a more collective society focusing more on the survival and prosperity of the state, rather than individual rights and freedoms. The source evidently identifies collectivism as well as authoritarianism as its most prominent ideological perspectives. If this source was a legitimate society in today’s world it would undoubtedly reject the natural rights of individuals as well as rule of law, egalitarianism along with the general will of the people. This can be most strongly supported by the following sentence stating, “The individual must serve the interests of a state.” The evidence taken from the source depicts a very strong presence of an authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization. This type of a society most commonly resembles the life in the medieval period, where everything and anything was used to benefit the state before benefitting its people, due to the divine right of the kings, which left no room for individual worth. The source states “Individual rights and freedoms are less important that the survival and prosperity of the state”, this is an excellent example of the thinking of the early English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). Hobbes believed that people are motivated by selfishness and greed, to avoid disorder and turmoil; he thought people should give up their freedom to a government that will ensure order, which this government would be strong and able to suppress rebellion. The thinking of Thomas Hobbes and the source, both disagree with liberalism. Both Hobbes and the source given prefer the people of a society to peacefully hand in their rights, so that one single body of government can lead to the progressivism of the state through reform

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