The Myth of Liberal Individualism (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "In the introduction, I suggested that the network of ideas that constitutes the received view of 'liberal individualism' is organized around a dual conception of..." (more)
Key Phrases: enforcement objection, associative conception, fact that individualists, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Bird makes an important contribution to contemporary discourse on liberalism, not least because he adopts a unique, noncommunitarian critical perspective." Ethics

"...this trenchant and intelligent book will justly reward the reader." Perspectives on Political Science

Product Description

Colin Bird mounts a powerful and original challenge to the traditional view that the ideas associated with the liberal political tradition--the meaning of political freedom, the notion of inviolable human rights, the idea of privacy--cohere around an "individualist" conception of the relation among individuals, society and the state. He argues that by taking this conception for granted, theorists have exaggerated the unity and integrity of liberal political ideals, and limited our perception of the issues they raise.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 236 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (May 13, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521641284
• ISBN-13: 978-0521641289
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,393,106 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent critique, July 23, 2000

By	Political Theorist (Cologne, Germany) - See all my reviews

I learned from this book and enjoyed it. And I write that as one of the very people (liberal individualists) whom the author sets out to debunk. Professor Bird takes liberal individualist ideas seriously; he does his best to avoid merely setting up straw men; and his arguments are remarkably insightful and provocative. I was not persuaded of the overall case he constructs (for more reasons than I could state here, an inappropriate forum) and I believe that Bird makes a number of errors in his rebuttal of libertarianism, but he certainly provided me an enjoyable opportunity to exercise my mind. (And in any case, just maybe I'm the one in error.) The Myth of Liberal Individualism is well worth a careful reading.