Write an argument summary, explain why Mill disagrees with the below allegation.

The first argument you will reconstruct comes from John Stuart Mills book On Liberty, specifically Chapter 2: Of the Liberty of Thought and Discussion (Links to an external site.).

Mill writes:

There are, it is alleged, certain beliefs, so useful, not to say indispensable to well-being, that it is as much the duty of governments to uphold those beliefs, as to protect any other of the interests of society. In a case of such necessity, and so directly in the line of their duty, something less than infallibility may, it is maintained, warrant, and even bind, governments to act on their own opinion, confirmed by the general opinion of mankind (38).

Write an argument summary, explain why Mill disagrees with the above allegation.

In your summary of Mills argument, make sure to pay attention to the following:

What does the initial allegation actually claim? To what part of the allegation is Mill objecting? What are the specific claims or premises Mills own argument relies upon? In your summary you should be as specific as possible and reference the reading directly. You should also aim to demonstrate your own understanding of the arguments (both the allegation and Mills response) by coming up with your own examples.

Because this is an argument reconstruction, you should not spend time explaining whether you agree or disagree with Mills argument. Focus instead on the reasoning he gives. We want to see the case he is making. We want to see the claims, or evidence or assumptions he is employing in support of his conclusion.

Technical Requirements:

Please do not include a bibliography or a cover page. To cite the Mill reading, just reference the page number of the quote or paraphrase in brackets e.g. Its condemnation may be allowed to rest on this common argument, not the worse for being common (30).

Latest Assignment