A celebration of individuality, diversity, and nonconformity, On Liberty still makes a persuasive argument for what John Stuart Mill believed to be humankind’s essential liberties: the freedoms of speech, assembly, and the pursuit of pleasure, so long as one’s actions do not impede the liberty of another. These freedoms, he maintained, result in a far more successful society than one ruled by the tyranny of the majority.
An exploration of the limits of government over the individual, this treatise on personal liberty has inspired debate since its publication in 1859, and has provided the foundation for modern liberal political thought.
