Alexandria Martinez

World History

Mr. Wisner

February 24, 2017

Individual Freedoms

Every man is free to do as he pleases. Imagine where we would be if Adam Smith had not

proposed this idea, or if John Locke, Voltaire, and Mary Wollstonecraft never proposed theirs.

We would be back to a world with no womens rights, no freedom of people, no rights, no

democracy, we would be stuck in a world with no individual freedoms. Back to the 17th and 18th

centuries. All of these philosophers believed that to improve society people needed individual

freedoms.

The freedom to do as we please with what is ours was first written and suggested by John

Locke. He proposed that it is our right and that nothing was more evident than man deciding for

himself. Without this suggestion we wouldnt have the idea of democracy that we do today. No

freedom of speech, freedom to vote, no choice at all! But, he didnt do it alone, Adam Smith

suggested something similar.

In the year 1776 Adam Smith wrote The Wealth of Nations. In this book he mentioned

that man does waht he wants and needs for himself while also, in a sense, helping the industry

around him. He states that by man pursuing his own interest he frequently promotes that of the

society. Which means that men should rule as one because when man betters himself he betters

the economy. Had Adam Smith not stated this there would be no men to run trade and economic

decision making would instead just be the government acting as one. And, as Voltaire says, by

men getting along as one, the economy will run smoothly.

 Voltaire was a poetic writer who, in the year 1726, wrote that if men combined religion

and belief, they would run a smoother government. In his writings he used England as a

reference, during this time England was having religions live smoothly along one another by

sharing and exchanging their beliefs. It was a very peaceful way to communicate beliefs and was

a basis for many ways people of the world are now equal, such as womens rights.

Mary Wollstonecraft was one of the very first womens rights activists. She suggested

that women get the same education opportunities as men, this sparked an argument over other

various ways women were unequal to their male companions and it soon started the battle and

long lasting war of womens rights. One of her very first statements about this topic was women

must be allowed to find their virtue on knowledge, which was scarcely possible unless they be

educated by the same pursuits as men.

These four philosophers inspired society by stating that individual freedoms are needed.

Equality amongst men and women, freedom of people, none of this would have been suggested

without them. Imagine where we would be today without these four people.