1st Edition
Classical Individualism The Supreme Importance of Each Human Being
In Classical Individualism, Tibor R. Machan argues that individualism is far from being dead. Machan identifies, develops and defends what he calls classical individualism - an individualism humanised by classical philosophy, rooted in Aristotle rather than Hobbes.
This book does not reject the social nature of human beings, but finds that every one has a self-directed agent who is responsible for what he or she does. Machan rejects all types of collectivism, including communitarianism, ethnic solidarity, racial unity, and gender identity. The ideas expressed here have important social and political implications, and will be of interest to anyone concerned with the notion of individuality and individual responsibility.
1 Individualism and classical liberalism 2 Ethics and free will: a neglected connection 3 Human action and the nature of moral evil 4 Why objective ethical claims appear subjective 5 A defense of property rights and capitalism 6 America’s founding principles and multiculturalism 7 Radical feminism as uniformitarianism 8 Human rights reaffirmed 9 Do animals have rights? 10 Politics and generosity 11 Understanding Eastern European developments 12 Individual rights and the common good: the case of the environment 13 Individualism and political dialogue 14 Individualism versus its critics 15 Reason, individualism, and capitalism: the moral vision of Ayn Rand
Biography
Tibor R. Machan
