NYHW: The Assignment - With Reference to Chapter III of On Liberty, and in no more than one page, what does Mill mean by "experiments in living"? Can you give three examples, past or present, of such experiments?"
“As it is useful that while mankind are imperfect there should be different opinions, so is it that there should be different experiments of living; that free scope should be given to varieties of character, short of injury to others” (Mill 53).
Throughout history there have been numerous cases in which individuals have expressed themselves according to John Stuart Mill’s “Free Scope” theory, however when the restraint of conducting these actions peacefully is applied the number greatly reduces. Mill suggests that originality, individuality, and genius all contribute to the success of these “experiments in living”.
One such individual who contributed to a particularly original revolution of thought, known as transcendentalism, was Henry David Thoreau. In conjunction with Emerson, Thoreau brought up theories of naturalist simplicity which seem to coincide with many of Mill’s ideas, “I am convinced, that if all men were to live as simply as I then did, thieving and robbery would be unknown” (Thoreau 138).
Another influential character in the history of free thought was Ayn Rand, whose objectivist theory holds many of the same libertarian ideals as within “On Liberty”. Rand’s emphasis was on selfishness within the individual, and freedom from the conformity of society, which would inevitably lead to its destruction. Rand’s Russian background led her to distrust the ideas of communism, which seems to parallel Mill’s aversion for the nation of China: “We have a warning example in China… (who) have become stationary (and) have remained so for thousands of years; and if they are ever to be further improved, it must be by foreigners” (68-69).
Finally, a revolutionist who seemed to most fully utilize the freedom of speech, through his inspired speeches, was Martin Luther King Jr, whose involvement in the Civil Rights movement led to the abolition of segregation. King’s dream of equal rights was itself a very utilitarian view due to the fact that it would lead to the greatest good for the African American population.