On Liberty

Mill’s classic defense of individual freedom argues that the only justification for society to restrain a person’s liberty is to prevent harm to others, and that beyond that, each of us must be free to think, speak, and live as we choose. He makes a powerful case for freedom of thought and discussion, the value of dissent, and the dangers of the ‘tyranny of the majority.’ Lucid, passionate, and enduringly relevant, On Liberty is a foundational text of liberal political philosophy and one of the most influential defenses of free speech and personal autonomy ever written. Its arguments remain at the heart of debates about freedom and the limits of authority.