Toward the Light of Liberty The Struggles for Freedom and Rights That Made the Modern Western World

by Grayling, A. C.

• ISBN13: 9780802716361
• ISBN10: 0802716369
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-10-02
• Publisher: Walker Books

Summary

The epic story of the interlocking struggles to achieve the individual rights and freedoms that characterize Western civilization, by one of the world's leading public intellectuals. Perhaps the hallmark of western civilization over the past five hundred years, writes A. C. Grayling, is the series of liberation struggles without which the ordinary citizen in Western countries would not enjoy the rights and freedoms we now take for granted. They began with the often violent battle to allow independent thought, uncontrolled by the Church, which led in time to political freedom as monarchies were gradually replaced by more representative forms of government. These in turn made possible the abolition of slavery, rights for working men and women, universal education, the enfranchisement of women, and much more. Each of these struggles was a memorable human drama, and Grayling skillfully interweaves the stories of celebrated and little-known heroes alike--from Martin Luther and John Locke to the sixteenth-century French scholar Sebastien Castellio and the nineteenth-century feminist Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The triumphs and sacrifices of those who dared to oppose authority ring loudly down the ages, proving how hard-won each successive victory has been. And yet, as Grayling persuasively shows in a cautionary coda, democratic governments under pressure have often thought it necessary to restrict rights in the name of freedom, further underlining how precious they are.Toward the Light of Libertyis, thus, particularly relevant as we head toward an election season in which our own civil liberties will surely be an issue. A. C. Graylingis Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck College, University of London, and the author of several books. A fellow of the World Economic Forum and past chairman of the human rights organization, June Fourth, he contributes frequently to theFinancial Timesand theEconomist. He lives in London. Perhaps the hallmark of western civilization over the past five hundred years, writes A. C. Grayling, is the series of liberation struggles without which the ordinary citizen in Western countries would not enjoy the rights and freedoms we now take for granted. They began with the often violent battle to allow independent thought, uncontrolled by the Church, which led in time to political freedom as monarchies were gradually replaced by more representative forms of government. These in turn made possible the abolition of slavery, rights for working men and women, universal education, the enfranchisement of women, and much more. Each of these struggles was a memorable human drama, and Grayling interweaves the stories of celebrated and little-known heroes alike--from Martin Luther and John Locke to the sixteenth-century French scholar Sebastien Castellio and the nineteenth-century feminist Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The triumphs and sacrifices of those who dared to oppose authority prove how hard-won each victory has been. And yet, as Grayling persuades in a cautionary coda, democratic governments under pressure have often thought it necessary to restrict rights in the name of freedom, further underlining how precious they are. "[George W. Bush] has proclaimed that individual liberty is a universal, even biological human aspiration. But a free society, in which individuals accept, even defend, the liberties of others is a social construct that has taken Western nations centuries to achieve. Philosophy professor Grayling has written an excellent survey that tracks the development of free, democratic societies and institutions over the past five centuries. He begins with the Protestant Reformation. Although Luther was hardly a tolerant man regarding religious issues, he

Author Biography

A. C. Grayling is a professor of philosophy at Birkbeck College, University of London. He is the author of the acclaimed Among the Dead Cities, and of Descartes: The Life and Times of a Genius. A frequent contributor to newspapers and magazines, he lives in London.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. xi
List of Illustrations and Picture Credits	p. xiii
Setting the Scene	p. 1
The Demand for Liberty
The Reformation and the Beginning of Modern Liberty	p. 17
Freeing the Mind	p. 59
The Fight against Absolutism	p. 105
The Extension of Liberty
Slaves, Workers, Women and the Struggle for Liberty	p. 163
The Liberty Century	p. 217
Rights out of Wrongs	p. 241
The Idea of Liberty and the Verge of Betrayal	p. 255
Landmarks on the Road to Freedom
The Bill of Rights 1689	p. 275
The United States Bill of Rights 1791	p. 281
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen	p. 285
The Chartists' 'Six Points' and Petition	p. 289
United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights	p. 293
Notes	p. 301
Bibliography	p. 315
Index	p. 325
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