Liberalism
This is a book that aims to include descriptions of the various sub-branches of liberalism.
There is a need for this book because:
- 1) There is often confusion as to the definition and scope of liberalism;
- 2) There is quite a lot of misunderstanding about the various forms of liberalism and how they are similar or different;
- 3) While a lot of this information is available in Wikipedia and other similar sources, it tends to be bundled with a lot of other details, like history, political events and biographies, which makes it hard to read.
A Note on Different Meanings of Liberalism and Liberal
[edit | edit source]"Liberalism" can be understood in a number of ways. A "liberal" in North America could also be described as "left-leaning". However, in Continental Europe, the exact opposite is true - liberalism is right-wing. Even within North America, liberalism is not uniformly defined. Consider that in the United States, liberals are associated with the Democratic Party; conservatives with the Republican Party. In Canada, the Liberal Party of Canada is a centrist party, with the New Democratic Party generally perceived to be to the left of the Liberals.The world "liberal" itself can also be used in a colloquial sense, as is outlined in the table below.
| Phrase | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| [verb] liberally | I like to spice my soup liberally. | I like to put a lot of spices in my soup. |
| liberal [noun] | A liberal helping of spicy soup. | A large portion. |
Table of Contents
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We welcome the addition of other types of liberalism, if you are familiar with them!