The core ideas and principles of liberalism, the differences between classical and modern liberalism, and the views of the key thinkers Locke, Wollstonecraft, Mill, Rawls and Friedan.

What this dot point is asking

AQA wants you to explain the core ideas of liberalism (the individual, freedom, the state, society and the economy), distinguish classical from modern liberalism, and apply the ideas of the five key thinkers: John Locke, Mary Wollstonecraft, John Stuart Mill, John Rawls and Betty Friedan. Liberalism is a core ideology examined in Paper 1, Section B, where you face one 9-mark "explain and analyse three" question and one 25-mark essay using the named thinkers.

Core ideas of liberalism

Five core ideas run through all liberalism. First, individualism: society exists to serve the individual, who is the basic unit of value, whether the self-interested individual of classical thought or the self-realising individual of modern liberalism. Second, freedom: liberals see liberty as the supreme political value, though they divide over whether it means the absence of constraint or the capacity to act. Third, reason: humans are rational and can resolve disputes through debate, which underpins liberal faith in education, discussion and tolerance. Fourth, equality: liberals believe in foundational equality (equal natural rights), formal equality (equal legal and political status) and equality of opportunity, but not equality of outcome. Fifth, consent: legitimate government rests on the consent of the governed, expressed through a constitution, the rule of law and limited, accountable institutions.

Liberals fear concentrated power. This is why they favour a fragmented state, constitutionalism, a separation of powers and checks such as judicial review. The state is necessary to prevent the strong dominating the weak, but it is also a potential threat to liberty, so it must be limited and dispersed.

Classical versus modern liberalism

Classical liberalism developed alongside industrial capitalism. It treats freedom as negative liberty (Berlin's absence of external constraint), assumes an atomistic society of self-reliant individuals, and supports laissez-faire economics and a minimal state confined to defence, law and order, and protecting property. Its economic libertarianism later feeds into the New Right.

Modern liberalism (social or welfare liberalism) emerged from the late 19th century as thinkers confronted industrial poverty and inequality. T.H. Green argued that genuine freedom is positive (the power to develop one's talents), so the state should act as an enabler, providing welfare, education and health to free people from the "social evils" that block self-development. Modern liberals accept limited intervention and a mixed economy while still defending the individual and constitutional government. The two strands agree on the individual, reason, tolerance and constitutionalism but disagree sharply over freedom, the state and the economy.

The key thinkers

• John Locke (1632 to 1704): in his Second Treatise of Government (1689), Locke argued that humans have natural rights to life, liberty and property that exist in a state of nature; government is created by a social contract to protect those rights, rests on the consent of the governed, and may be resisted if it breaks its trust. He is the foundation of liberal constitutionalism and government by consent.
• Mary Wollstonecraft (1759 to 1797): in A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) she argued that women are rational beings entitled to the same formal equality, education and freedom as men; denying them undermines liberal reason itself. An early case for equality of opportunity and women's rights.
• John Stuart Mill (1806 to 1873): in On Liberty (1859) he set out the harm principle (freedom should be limited only to prevent harm to others) and defended individuality and free expression as engines of human progress. As a bridge between classical and modern liberalism, he also valued education and the development of the individual.
• John Rawls (1921 to 2002): in A Theory of Justice (1971) he argued for justice as fairness: behind a "veil of ignorance", not knowing their place in society, rational people would choose principles protecting the worst-off (the difference principle). This justifies the modern liberal enabling state and redistribution.
• Betty Friedan (1921 to 2006): in The Feminine Mystique (1963) she argued that women are held back by social conditioning, not biology, and need equal opportunity in work and public life. She extends liberal equality of opportunity to gender and connects liberalism to liberal feminism.