Essay/Term paper: Classical liberalism

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Economics

Classical Liberalism


Classical liberalism was the dominant ideology of capitalism during the
periods of eighteenth century. It view was widely accepted. It said that
government should just sit back and watch business so they do not cheat the
government also to enforce contracts. The classical had many creeds they were
Psychological, economic, and ,political. Each view has its own points. In
this paper I will discuss those points and show you how Bob Dole is a classical
liberalist.
Psychological creed of classical liberalism is based on four assumptions
of human nature. People were believed to be egoistic, coldly calculating,
essential inert, and atomistic. Hobbes a economics argued that people were
motivated by the desire for pleasure and to avoid pain. Jeremy Bentham believed
pleasure differ in intensity but there was no qualitative difference. He argued
that "quality of pleasure being equal, to a pushpin is as good as poetry," The
theory he is trying to say about human motivation is that the we are lazy and
selfish
A big part of classical liberalism is that we are coldly calculating.
Being coldly calculating means that when a situation comes about we dissever
what will make us receive less pain and more pleasure. Although the human
motivation is by pleasure it is the decision that are cold, selfish,
dispassionate, and rational assessment of the situation to choose how to avoid
the pain and receive the pleasure. The emphasis on the importance of rational
measurement of pleasure and pains that forms the calculating intellectual side
of the classical liberal's of psychology.
Classical liberalism tells us that if the individuals saw there was no
chance of pleasure or feared no pain, then they would be inert, motionless, or
in simpler terms. Just plain lazy. Any type of extra work is consider painful
therefore would not been done unless someone were to promise them greater
pleasure then the pain. This thinking of the human race being lazy came about
in the 1700 to 1770 in England where people only worked because of the fear of
hunger. The Reverend Joseph Townsend put this view very succinctly: " Hunger is
not only peaceable, silent and unremitted pressure, but, as the most natural
motive to industry and labor, it calls forth the most powerful exertions."
Towsend believed that "only the experience of hunger would goad them to labor"
The last view of classical liberalism is atomistic. The view of atomism
is that the individual was a more fundamental reality than the group or society.
The classical liberals rejected the views of Christian paternalist ethic which
was that the society is like a family and the relationships that made up that
society was more important then the individual. Classical liberals believed the
society was nothing but a additive of the individuals that constructed it.
The classical liberals believed that economic creed was that people
would always exert themselves to be better and more wealthy then the people
around them. If both capitalists and laborers were left alone, self-interest
would guide them o use their capital and labor where were are most productive.
The search for more money would be all society would need to keep itself
together. They believed that the government should have no control to limit or
control in any way to what is to be produced and how. A better product will
always top another so self-interest would strive producers to produce better
quality products for the consumers.
The political creed said that the government should protect society in
three ways. The first way was from any threats of from external threats which
lead in the nineteenth century to a protection of foreign markets through armed
coercion. The second way was to protect citizens against "injustices" committed
by other citizens. The protection was only for private property, enforcement of
contracts, and preservation of internal order. The third was giving the
government the job to protect the source of power of the economically and
politically dominant class; the capitalists.
When Bob Dole said "its your money , its your money, its your money, and
you know how to spend it better than the government" he was referring to the
view of the classical liberalism where we are coldly calculating, egotistical,
inert, and ,atomistic. He believes that society would drive themselves. He
agrees with the economic creed that the government should only protect us from
the "injustices" of society. I agree with what Bob Dole is saying because I
believe that people will dive themselves to get more money which in turn will
cause better quality goods and also more jobs. Which in turn will cause a
better society. I also believe that the government should not be able to
control businesses only watch over them. I also agree that the government
should only protect us from "injustices" and to help maintain contracts.
Classical liberalism is a view that people know how to run a good
society whether they know it or not. It is a instinctive drive to do better.
Society will learn to use each other to do better, to push ourselves further,
and intern help each other out. We do not need the government to control us
because that may in time cause a society to self-destruct because you are not
being lead by the views and drives of yourself but the wills of others. So
inconclusion classical liberalism is a view that is very necessary in our
society.