Views of Karl Marx and John Stuart Mill

"None of the supposed rights of man go beyond the egoistic man, man as he is a member of civil society; that is, an individual separated from the community, withdrawn into himself, wholly preoccupied with his private interests and acting in accordance with his private caprice."

Karl Marx, On the Jewish Question

"The only freedom which deserves the name, is that of pursuing our own good in our own way, so long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs, or impede their efforts to obtain it."

John Stuart Mill, On Liberty

While, after reading the above two quotations, it may appear that Karl Marx and John Stuart Mill take seemingly opposing views on the proper relationship between an individual and his or her community, a closer reading of the texts of Marx and Mill reveals that both Marx and Mill articulate a much more nuanced view on the ideal relationship between man and his society. By first analyzing Mill's views on the proper relationship between an individual and his community and then moving on to address Marx's views on the subject, this essay will argue that while Mill leaves the individual sovereign over his own actions, he does not deny the existence of obligations or duty to others. Marx, on the other hand, while trumpeting the ideals of communism, never looses sight of the importance of the personal development of man as an individual. Furthermore, Marx's view on the relationship between man and his community exists in an entirely different paradigm than that of Mill's. Mill views his "political emancipation" of man entirely within the context of previous human experience. Marx, however, longs for "human emancipation" and, with his material...

... middle of paper ...

...on" to describe the part of life that exists in society (148). Mill states, "When, by conduct of this sort, a person is led to violate a distinct and assignable obligation to any other person or persons, the case is taken out of the self-regarding class" (148). Man has an obligation to his family, to his debtors, but it is interesting to note that Mill defines no "natural" obligation towards society. Man is free to choose his obligations. The existence of a natural obligation to society is left to other philosophers, but Mill is clear in the fact that a free individual must obey the obligations that he has created within the community. Society exists to enforce the agreements, or obligations, that man enters into. Man is not an island, but mostly because he chooses not to be. For a more in-depth view of a possible natural obligation to society, we turn to Marx.