John Stuart Mill On Liberty Chapter 2 Analysis

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Chapter two of Mill’s On Liberty discusses the freedom of speech. Mill ultimately declares that a person is free to express his/her opinion as long as it does not cause physical harm to an individual’s person or possessions. This opinion can be “correct” or “wrong” and/or it can cause emotional harm; as long as Mill’s former harm principle is not violated, a person can have unlimited free speech. Mill explains that there is no possible way for one to know for certain that an opinion is true or false, only that one can work towards a more reasonable and logical opinion. Certainty means little if many people are certain that their differing opinions are true, and many opinions thought to be true have later been proven to be false such as slavery being accepted to it being inhumane. His strongest argument for this claim is that to suppress an opinion, one must be certain that it is incorrect and that the suppressor is infallible. There are many issues that arise when one tries to suppress an opinion, whether that opinion be true or not. A true opinion should not be suppressed, even if it is not widely believed in. Others are free to disagree with it, but this must take form in a formal argument. If the argument is really true, it will show to be more reasonable …show more content…

Since no one is infallible, it is up to society to dispute opinions in a reasonable and logical way rather than outright banning or accepting them. This is the best way to develop a true opinion for others to follow. One must also not withhold his/her opinion for fear of it being wrong or else he/she would never contribute to society or make basic decisions. A person must make his/her own judgements and rely on society to correct his/her mistakes with logic. This is why Mill supports unlimited free speech that causes no physical harm to another

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