Examining the Philosophical Values of Individualism and Collectivism

This essay delves into the philosophical values of individualism and collectivism, drawing upon the works of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jaques Rousseau to explore differing perspectives on human nature and the role of government. It examines the concepts of personal and collective identity, the importance of environmentalism, and the influence of language and media on shaping individual and societal values. The essay also discusses Tommy Douglas's vision for a cooperative society and critiques Myanmar's government's prioritization of national interests over citizen welfare, highlighting the tension between individualistic and collectivistic ideologies. The document is available on Desklib, a platform offering a wide range of study resources, including past papers and solved assignments, to support students in their academic pursuits.

Running head: VALUES OF INDIVIDUALISM AND COLLECTIVISM
VALUES OF INDIVIDUALISM AND COLLECTIVISM
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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1. Response to Question Number 1
 Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) was a British philosopher who was believed to be one of
the pioneers of the Social Contract Theory. According to Hobbes in his book Leviathan, every
individual on the face of the Earth was cruel and there should be an institution which would have
the authority to control the brutal human behaviour to avoid war like situation and make the
society stable and well governed (Hobbes, 2016). Hobbes was of the notion that human beings
should not be allowed to live a life of complete independence because that would bring conflict
amongst each other due to the difference in their personal ideologies. Therefore, Hobbes opined
that there should be an ultimate authority of the state where individuals would summon some of
their rights to the governing authority so that peace and order could be maintained in the state
and individual would die a death due to violence.
 John Locke
John Locke (1632-1704) was an English philosopher who laid down the idea that the
government is obligated to safeguard the rights of its citizens by protecting their life, liberty and
property. Locke was the opinion that the government must be selected by the people through
individual voting and he was not in favour of the divine rule of the king/monarch. He was also of
the opinion that people should have the right to go against the government, if it failed to serve
the citizens in the right manner (Schouls, 2018). Locke also developed the theory of empiricism
where he stated that when a human is born, the mind is like a blank slate, and the individual
gathers knowledge and wisdom from the experiences the individual gains through his senses by
observing the different phenomena of the world. Locke was one of the pioneer writers to

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influence several revolutions around the world. Locke’s theory was based on the philosophy that
every individual was created by the supreme almighty and every individual possessed their own
rights as given by their creator.
 Jean-Jaques Rousseau
Jean-Jaques Rousseau (1712-1778) is one of the most well know French philosophers
from the 18th century, which is also commonly known as the Age of Enlightenment. Rousseau
was of the opinion that human beings are far better in their natural state, rather than being
corrupted by the civilization of the society (Rousseau, 2018). Rousseau stated that civilization
bring inequality among human beings which results in the conflict of ideas, whereas, in the
natural state, human beings are governed by their natural instinct of self-governance with a
feeling of compassion and pity towards themselves. Though, Rousseau also mentioned that due
to the rise in population, human interaction was inevitable and the requirement of an authority
was necessary, to control all the natural rights of human beings in order to save themselves to be
governed by other individuals, that is, absolute monarchy.
2. Response to Question Number 2
The world is not seen from the same perspective by every individual on this Earth. Every
individual have their own way of seeing things and believing it to be the most appropriate.
Identity is factor by which a person is known to the world and every identity has its own
uniqueness. Personal identity would refer to the uniqueness an individual possesses by the kind
of belief system and values the person has, which differentiates that individual from others
(Shoemaker & Tobia, 2018). Collective identity on the other hand, would refer to the collective
representation of identities by a group of individuals who have a common set of beliefs and value

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system. Collective identity depends on various factors like, religion, faith, culture and language
(Sedikides & Brewer, 2015).
3. Response to Question Number 3
I agree with the statement of Mahatma Gandhi because the Earth is made up of enough
resources that can be helpful for the survival of every individual on this planet, but it can never
satisfy the constant greed for more resources by individuals, which as a result poses a threat to
the deficiency of resources to other individuals. The world has seen the growing level of
corruption and the greed for more power by a section of individuals at the cost of the survival of
other individuals. This phenomenon creates imbalance in the society where a section of people
become powerful and simultaneously the other section develops difficulty in surviving.
4. Response to Question Number 4
The environment is the greatest factor on which the lion’s share of human survival
depends. If the environment ceases to persist, then any kind of survival, for any species of living
beings becomes impossible (Radhouani et al., 2014). Environmental degradation has become the
most popular issue of concern in every part of the world today. Climatic changes are rapidly
taking place which has already started to pose grave threats to the entire mankind’s survival
(Kjellstrom & McMichael, 2013). Environmentalism is the most important ideology that is
needed to be taken at the earliest by all individuals to make the Earth a better place to live in the
coming future. Several political parties around the globe have taken up the ideology known as
Green Politics, in order to uplift the environmental conditions of their respective countries. As
individuals, our lifestyles have also significantly changed by learning the consequences of

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exploitation of the environment and it has reflected in our day to day lifestyle. Individuals have
taken up eco-friendly measures like using biodegradable carry bags, switching off of vehicle
engines at traffic signals and using more eco-friendly products like Biogas and CNG. The growth
of this change is significantly slow, but it is definitely making a mark in the betterment of our
environment.
5. Response to Question Number 5
According to the census of 2006 based on the mother tongue, English was the highest
spoken group of language and Chinese was the second highest spoken group of language
including Cantonese and Mandarin.
6. Response to Question Number 6
Language is the most important vehicle by which the values and norms of culture is
passed from one generation to another (Knowles, 2014). The Francophones of Alberta, also
showed their will to fight and protect their language from assimilation. The Canadian
government has been protecting and promoting French as one of their most popular languages by
making appropriate changes in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (1982). This
struggle of the Franco-Albertans reflects their ideology of collectivism where the entire
population united together who shared the same interest.
7. Response to Question Number 7
Media is considered to be the fourth pillar of democracy is many of the democratic
countries around the world because they possess the ability to shape and influence the idea of

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individuals (Goel & Kumar, 2015). Media has also influenced the way people think or have a
perspective about various issues of the world. Individuals are not even aware that media-agenda
setting has changed their perception of considering things to be more important and relevant
those are frequently covered by media.
8. Response to Question Number 8
An ideology is nothing but an accumulation of beliefs and values that a specific group of
people or an individual holds towards the material world and the kind of experience that
individual gains from those beliefs and values. The beliefs about human nature based on their
morality forms the basis of an ideology. The consideration of humans being good beings, the
interaction is more open and friendly, but if the consideration is from the opposite, then
individuals become cautious before interacting with each other. The four characteristics of an
ideology that are concerned with the essentials questions of life are as follows;
 What are human like, and why do they act as they do?
 How society should be organised?
 How has the world worked in the past?
 How should it work in the future?
 How might the view of such a human nature influence the choice of an ideology?
9. Response to Question Number 9
Tommy Douglas was a Canadian politician who had set up the first single paper,
universal health care program in the continent and he believed that he could make a better life for
all the citizens by making changes in the society. Douglas’ ideology was to create a society

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where every individual could be given benefits by making necessary changes in the structure of
governance. He believed that people could do better if they worked together, rather than working
against each other. He wanted his citizens to build a cooperative society, instead of making a
society similar to a jungle. Douglas also believed that the younger generation of the era could do
wonders though they possessed rebellious feelings towards the feudal materialistic society. He
believed that the younger generation would make a society where the quality of happiness of life
would be given more emphasis than the quantity of the goods. Douglas also believed that the
economic sector could be enhanced by providing pension schemes for the elderly people who
were to spend it on various commodities which as a result would affect the market structure of
the society. He also referred the idea of introducing unemployment insurance schemes providing
almost $100 per week to the unemployed. Lastly, he referred of restructuring the taxation policy
which would result in the rise of a better economy.
Thus, from the above discussion it can be seen that Thomas Douglas expressed a
collective form of ideology in which he believed that a nation could grow if all the citizens of the
nation would work together in a collective manner.
10. Response to Question Number 10
The government of Myanmar did not take any action to improve the condition of the
displaced and missing citizens and in addition to that it also did not accept the grants and aids
provided to the country by various other countries. The reason behind this attitude Myanmar was
to put its resources to a national referendum for the formulation of a new constitution. This
behaviour of Myanmar proves that their individualistic and egoistic ideology was higher to the
government authorities than the lives of their citizens.

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11. Response to Question Number 11
Individualism is a social construct where individuals believe in the existence of an
environment where individual goals and self-reliance is given more emphasis than any other
form of ideology (Triandis, 2018). Individuals give a more importance to their individual goals
rather than the collective achievement of the group. The five principles of individualism are
mentioned below:
 Rule of Law:
This principle of individualism states that the rule of the law is higher than any other
institution in the country. No individual regardless of the post that person holds cannot claim any
power or decision contradicting to the rule of law.
 Individual Rights and Freedom
Individual rights and freedom is the main essence of any individualism and it refers rights
and the freedom of individuals relating to topics like religion, forming association, better
standards of life, security and liberty and the right and freedom to vote by all citizens (including
females).
 Private Property
The concept of private property is understood in various ways that differ from one
country to another. The term private property initially referred to the ownership of real estate but
private property can also be referred to other forms of physical possessions and intellectual
property like inventions and artistic works.

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 Economic Freedom
The term economic freedom refers to the freedom to buy and sell whatever individuals of
a country want. These can also include selling and buying of physical labour, ideas and
inventions. Economic freedom also refers to the existence of free market where there is no
interference by any external force like the government in of the trade deals.
 Competition
Self-interest and competition is one of the key factors of individualism because
individuals following such a theory believe that people are more efficient in their work when it is
directed towards their own benefit.
12. Response to Question Number 12
Collectivism refers to a kind of ideology where people possess the belief that if
individuals work together for the common good then there are more chances of growth. The
foundation of collectivism relies upon the principles of socialism and communism. The six
important principles of collectivism are as follows:
 Economic Equality
The term economic equality is similar to all collectivist economies, but the meaning of
economic equality is different from one economy to another. The term can refer to a situation
where people with larger incomes have to pay higher taxes and it can also refer to a situation
where the means of production are owned collectively.

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 Co-operation
Co-operation as the word suggests refers to the coming together of all individuals to work
for a common goal. Cooperation is essential in a collectivist society because every individual has
unique thinking capabilities and ideas which need to be channelized to one specific goal by
designation different roles for the betterment of all individuals.
 Public Property
Public property refers to any kind of building, vehicle or office that is owned by the
community and not a private owner. Everything is owned by the community and utilised for the
development of the entire society.
 Collective Interest
The word collective interest refers to the similar interests that individuals in a specific
society have in common. Collective interest is basically putting forward the desired goals of
several individuals in a collective manner rather than putting them forward individually.
 Collective Responsibility
Collective responsibility is the shared responsibility that individuals take for any incident.
There is no individual representation and the entire community is help responsible for the deed
of a single individual in any case of success or failure.
 Adherence to Collective Norms
The collective representation by individuals of a specific community or society also
follows a similar standard of norms that however govern the conduct expected from an
individual as a daily responsibility.

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13. Response to Question Number 13
Dr Muhammad Yunus being an eminent business person and also an economist helped
several individuals from Bangladesh by providing them with personal loans so that they could
uplift their living standards which as a result would lead to the development of the entire nation.
This technique of Dr Yunus provided a basis of both collectivistic and individualistic
development.

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Reference
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Rousseau, J. J. (2018). Rousseau: The Social Contract and other later political writings.
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Schouls, P. A. (2018). Reasoned freedom: John Locke and enlightenment. Cornell University
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Shoemaker, D., & Tobia, K. P. (2018). Personal identity. (Shoemaker & Tobia, 2018)
Sedikides, C., & Brewer, M. B. (2015). Individual self, relational self, collective self. Psychology
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Radhouani, H., Silva, N., Poeta, P., Torres, C., Correia, S., & Igrejas, G. (2014). Potential impact
of antimicrobial resistance in wildlife, environment and human health. Frontiers in
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Kjellstrom, T., & McMichael, A. J. (2013). Climate change threats to population health and well-
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Knowles, G. (2014). A cultural history of the English language. Routledge.
Goel, S., & Kumar, A. (2015). Media As A Propellant of Feminism In Indian Democracy.
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