This book has three central themes:
(1) On freedom of thought and discussion;
(2) about personal freedom;
(3) Social control of individual freedom.
By reading this book, we can see that the division of power between individuals and society is the core of this book. First of all, as long as the individual's behavior does not involve the interests of anyone except himself, the individual does not have to be responsible for society. Second, the only condition for an individual to be responsible for society is that his behavior harms the interests of others. Mill believes that when individuals pursue a legitimate goal, no matter under any system, it will inevitably have an impact on the interests of others, resulting in the loss of others' interests. The criterion to judge whether this behavior is justified is whether it harms the general interests of society. Therefore, the individual freedom emphasized by Mill is a kind of social freedom, which reflects Mill's thinking on how to realize the principle of freedom. He believes that the value of personality is not only a metaphysical dogma, but something that can only be realized under practical conditions. On Freedom affirms the freedom of thought and discussion, and requires the government not only to protect civil liberties through passive non-intervention, but also to create and promote civil liberties through legislation. The way the system plays its role is mainly society, and Mill introduced social factors into his exposition of freedom. Mill believes that political freedom and social freedom are valuable in themselves, and people's pursuit of freedom is not only beneficial to themselves, but also to society.
Through Mill's exposition, the scope of freedom is wider, and liberal philosophy is closer to the requirements of the times. The principle of freedom and liberal philosophy have gained a broader development space in theory and practice.
"On Freedom" consists of five chapters, focusing on civil liberties and expounding the issue of freedom in many aspects.
The first chapter is the introduction, pointing out that the whole book is about civil liberty, or social liberty, and discusses the nature and limits of the power exercised by society over individuals. It is believed that the only purpose of interfering with the freedom of movement of social members should be "self-defense"-to prevent harm to others. Declaring freedom is the freedom to pursue one's own interests according to one's own path without depriving others of their freedom.
The second chapter discusses the freedom of thought and speech, and holds that human beings should freely form and express their opinions, otherwise it will destroy human reason and virtue.
The third chapter expounds the free development of personality, which is the primary factor of human happiness and will make people more valuable to freedom and others. It advocates allowing different people to live different lives and opposes the tyranny of social customs.
The fourth chapter discusses the restriction of social control on individual freedom. It is pointed out that the individual's obligation to society stems from the protection of society. As long as the actions of social members do not harm each other's interests and rights, and as long as they assume the responsibility of defending society or its members from damage and obstruction, they will not be forced by society.
The fifth chapter reaffirms two basic principles: as long as personal behavior does not involve the interests of others, individuals do not have to be responsible for society and do not allow others to interfere; If an individual's behavior harms the interests of others, he should be responsible to society and be punished by society or law.