Deck 3: Liberalism

Question 1

Liberals have historically favored which of the following?

A) a planned economy
B) the minimal state
C) religious toleration
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Answer 1

C

Question 2

That government should not forbid "capitalist acts between consenting adults" (R. Nozick) is the view taken by

A) welfare-state liberals.
B) libertarians.
C) classical conservatives.
D) neoconservatives.
E) none of the above.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

John Stuart Mill's "one very simple principle" is the

A) greatest happiness of the greatest number principle.
B) principle of: from each according to his ability, to each according to his need.
C) principle of fair play.
D) principle that what touches all should be decided by all.
E) none of the above is correct.

Answer 3

E

Question 4

Which thinker employs the expression and the image of the "invisible hand"?

A) John Locke
B) Adam Smith
C) Karl Marx
D) Thomas Hobbes
E) none of the above

Question 5

Who among the following favored tax-supported "public works," or what we would now call "infrastructure"?

A) Karl Marx
B) John Locke
C) Adam Smith
D) Thomas Hobbes
E) none of the above

Question 6

Which of the following falls under the heading of "public works"?

A) bridges
B) roads
C) canals
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 7

According to Adam Smith, which of the following falls under the heading of "moral sentiments"?

A) compassion
B) pity
C) benevolence
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 8

Adam Smith was an early critic of

A) self-interest.
B) mercantilism.
C) rationalism.
D) hedonism.
E) utilitarianism.

Question 9

Who among the following uses the phrase "the greatest happiness of the greatest number"?

A) Jeremy Bentham
B) John Locke
C) Thomas Hobbes
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 10

The political theory or philosophy that advocates promoting "the greatest happiness of the greatest number" is:

A) Libertarianism.
B) Utilitarianism.
C) Marxism.
D) Conservatism.
E) none of the above.

Question 11

Who among the following advocate the protectionist theory of democracy?

A) Jeremy Bentham
B) John Stuart Mill
C) James Mill
D) both A and B
E) both A and C

Question 12

Who formulated the Harm Principle?

A) James Mill
B) John Stuart Mill
C) Jeremy Bentham
D) C. D. Harm
E) none of the above

Question 13

Who created the first welfare state?

A) John Stuart Mill
B) Karl Marx
C) Otto von Bismarck
D) G. W.F. Hegel
E) none of the above

Question 14

What was the ideological affiliation of the creator of the first welfare state?

A) liberal
B) socialist
C) communist
D) conservative
E) none of the above

Question 15

Jeremy Bentham called his philosophy

A) egalitarianism.
B) libertarianism.
C) utilitarianism.
D) unitarianism.
E) none of the above.

Question 16

In Anarchy, State, and Utopia, Robert Nozick argues that

A) "victimless crimes" should be illegal because they are "capitalist acts between consenting adults."
B) no one truly deserves his or her talents, abilities, or status in society.
C) the only legitimate state or government is "the minimal state."
D) religion is simply superstition that prevents people from seeing things as they really are.
E) society can be democratic only when wealth is shared equally by everyone.

Question 17

Welfare liberals usually support which of the following policies in order to promote equal opportunity?

A) affirmative action
B) differential worth
C) comparable compensation
D) desert-based discrimination
E) compensatory retribution

Question 18

Social Darwinists believe that

A) no government can effectively rule people of two different races.
B) government should be nothing more than a "night watchman state."
C) society has a responsibility to care for the weak and disabled.
D) government promotes social progress when it helps the weak.
E) both B and D are correct.

Question 19

The Declaration of Independence can be considered a liberal document because it

A) requires government to follow the principle of utility.
B) requires government to follow the harm principle.
C) openly attacks the principle of religious conformity.
D) openly rejects the principle of aristocratic privilege.
E) insists that government must protect the rights of individuals.

Question 20

The Protestant Reformation prepared the way for liberalism by

A) convincing Protestants that they needed to reform.
B) encouraging people to value individual conscience rather than conformity.
C) attacking the Roman Church's emphasis on ascribed status.
D) teaching that salvation comes from doing good deeds and helping others.
E) openly calling for toleration of religious differences.

Question 21

When the French revolutionaries attacked aristocratic privilege, they were attacking a form of

A) ascribed status.
B) religious conformity.
C) political absolutism.
D) mercantilism.
E) welfare liberalism.

Question 22

Liberalism began as a reaction against

A) religious conformity and ascribed status.
B) ascribed status and laissez-faire economics.
C) laissez-faire economics and mercantilism.
D) mercantilism and religious tolerance.
E) both A and C are correct.

Question 23

John Stuart Mill believed that people should be

A) free to do whatever they want.
B) free to do what they want as long as they do not harm or threaten harm to others.
C) free to do what they want as long as they do not harm others or themselves.
D) protected against the tyranny of the majority.
E) both B and D are correct.

Question 24

According to John Locke's idea of the social contract,

A) all governments deserve the consent of the people they govern.
B) the pursuit of happiness is a natural right.
C) Catholics and atheists should not be tolerated.
D) people consent to establish government to protect their natural rights.
E) government must act to promote the prosperity of the people.

Question 25

According to Thomas Hobbes, "a general inclination of all mankind" is

A) to enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
B) to compete for profits in the economic marketplace.
C) a belief in the importance of worshiping as each person sees fit.
D) a restless desire for power after power that ceases only with death.
E) to buy copies of Hobbes's books.

Question 26

According to Jeremy Bentham's utilitarian philosophy, we should

A) do what we want as long as we don't harm or threaten harm to others.
B) allow the government only to protect us from force and fraud.
C) establish a common religion to bind together the members of society.
D) try to promote the greatest happiness of the greatest number.
E) major in political science because it has so much utility.

Question 27

Thomas Paine did NOT

A) write Common Sense.
B) believe that people have natural rights.
C) argue that government is at best a "necessary evil."
D) draft the Constitution of the United States.
E) argue that monarchy is incompatible with individual liberty.

Question 28

John Rawls argues in A Theory of Justice that

A) inequalities in wealth and resources are just only when they benefit the least-advantaged people in society.
B) "victimless crimes" should be legal because they are "capitalist acts between consenting adults."
C) the profit incentive will not be necessary if people are paid what they truly deserve.
D) what goes around comes around.
E) both B and C are correct.

Question 29

John Stuart Mill's uneasy acceptance of democracy is seen in his

A) proposal for plural voting.
B) warning about the tyranny of the majority.
C) attack on public education.
D) defense of mercantilist restrictions on commerce.
E) both A and B are correct.

Question 30

Adam Smith and other early liberals adopted the idea of laissez-faire because they

A) had no ideas of their own.
B) thought that economic competition is the best way to achieve prosperity.
C) wanted the government to promote economic growth by managing the economy.
D) saw colonies as a danger to the economy of the "mother country."
E) thought that this was the best way to promote mercantilism.

Question 31

Which of the following events took place in the nineteenth century?

A) Protestant Reformation
B) English Civil War
C) American Revolution
D) French Revolution
E) division of liberalism into two competing branches

Question 32

Feudalism is important to the origins of liberalism because

A) early liberals accepted the feudal idea of achieved status.
B) most of the early liberals, such as Hobbes and Locke, were serfs.
C) early liberals shared the feudal concern for individual welfare.
D) most of the early liberals, such as Locke, controlled many serfs.
E) early liberals rejected the feudal restraints on individual liberty.

Question 33

In The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith maintains that

A) mercantilism is the most efficient economic system.
B) a welfare state ought to be established.
C) granting monopolies to successful businesses is the best way to promote the wealth of a nation.
D) the best way to promote the public interest is to let people pursue their private interests.
E) economic competition usually leads to civil war as people fight for profits.

Question 34

According to John Locke's Letter Concerning Toleration,

A) religion is not a public but a private matter.
B) everyone has a natural right to worship in any way whatsoever.
C) government receives its authority directly from God.
D) the government must tolerate Catholics but not atheists.
E) both B and C are correct.

Question 35

According to T. H. Green, freedom

A) is merely the absence of restraint.
B) includes the power or the ability to develop one's potential.
C) is something that government can and should promote.
D) is something everyone can fully enjoy, no matter how poor or ill or ignorant he or she may be.
E) both B and C are correct.

Question 36

Social Darwinists are also

A) neoclassical liberals.
B) welfare liberals.
C) mercantilist liberals.
D) communitarians.
E) a heavy-metal rock group from England.

Question 37

Which/Who of the following do/does NOT argue that people have natural rights?

A) Thomas Hobbes
B) John Locke
C) The Declaration of Independence
D) The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of Citizens
E) Jeremy Bentham

Question 38

When the French National Assembly attacked "civil distinctions" in the Declaration of Rights, it was

A) complaining about economic monopolies granted to the king's friends.
B) trying to abolish aristocratic privilege and ascribed status.
C) trying to abolish political absolutism.
D) arguing for an active government to attack poverty and ignorance.
E) complaining that laissez-faire economics did not do enough to protect French industries.

Question 39

When the French revolutionaries attacked aristocratic privilege, they were

A) complaining about economic monopolies granted to the king's friends.
B) trying to replace a society based on ascribed status with one based on achieved status.
C) trying to abolish religious conformity and political absolutism.
D) arguing in favor of active government to attack the problems of poverty and ignorance.
E) simply repeating Abraham Lincoln's point in the Gettysburg Address about human equality.

Question 40

Which of the following is NOT a view held by the early or classical liberals?

A) Government should follow the will of the majority in all matters.
B) Government should protect the natural rights and liberties of the people.
C) Government receives its authority from the consent of the governed.
D) Government must be limited in its powers and responsible to the people.
E) Government should not enforce conformity to any particular religion.

Question 41

Thomas Hobbes's Leviathan differs significantly from John Locke's political writings in that

A) both favored revolution against absolute rulers, but only Locke favored democracy.
B) Hobbes thought that any government is better than the state of nature, but Locke disagreed.
C) Locke favored religious toleration, but Hobbes would only tolerate Catholics and atheists.
D) Hobbes denied that all men are naturally free and equal.
E) Locke denied that all men are naturally free and equal.

Question 42

According to John Stuart Mill's On Liberty, people should be

A) free to speak and think for themselves as long as they don't harm or threaten harm to others.
B) free to do whatever they want to do.
C) required to graduate from high school before they are allowed to vote.
D) required to follow the will of the majority as long as the political process is truly democratic.
E) free to do whatever they want as long as they let Mill have more votes than anyone else.

Question 43

Social Darwinists, such as Herbert Spencer and W. G. Sumner, believe that government should

A) be abolished.
B) help people who are unable to help themselves.
C) leave people alone to compete for survival as long as they don't use force or fraud against others.
D) redistribute wealth from the rich to the poor so that everyone can compete on an equal basis.
E) pay all college expenses for biology majors.

Question 44

In general, liberals have believed that most people are

A) rational and self-interested.
B) at the mercy of uncontrollable passions and desires.
C) inclined to cooperate with others rather than compete against them.
D) too ignorant to be able to lead a self-governed life.
E) devoted to their families and communities.

Question 45

Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and other early liberals agreed that

A) some people are naturally superior to the rest of us and ought to have authority over us.
B) people always have a right to overthrow a government that violates their natural rights.
C) the state of nature is the only thing worse than a tyrannical government.
D) all individuals are naturally free, equal, and independent.
E) if something feels good to you, it must be good for you.

Question 46

The liberal view of human nature holds that people in general

A) will do what they can to bring an end to poverty and suffering in the world.
B) are born savages who must be civilized and restrained by families, schools, and governments.
C) use their reason to control and direct their desires.
D) are more likely to act out of self-interest than out of concern for others.
E) both C and D are correct.

Question 47

On which of the following points do Thomas Hobbes, the author of Leviathan, and John Locke, the author of the Second Treatise on Government, disagree?

A) In the state of nature, all men are free and equal.
B) The consent of the governed is what gives some people political authority over others.
C) People have natural rights.
D) The only kind of government to which people can consent is a limited government.
E) The only law in the state of nature is the law of nature.

Question 48

On which of the following points would Thomas Paine, Robert Nozick, Herbert Spencer, and William Graham Sumner all agree?

A) Freedom is a positive power or capacity of doing something that is worth doing.
B) We should always do what will promote the greatest happiness of the greatest number of people.
C) What touches all should be decided by all.
D) Government is, at best, a necessary evil.
E) If it feels good to you, it must be good for you.

Question 49

Poverty, illness, ignorance, and prejudice are obstacles that prevent people from being free, say the

A) neoclassical liberals.
B) physiocrats.
C) welfare liberals.
D) libertarians.
E) mercantilists.

Question 50

Government is an altogether unnecessary evil, according to

A) Philip Selznick and other communitarians.
B) Murray Rothbard and other libertarian anarchists.
C) John Rawls and other welfare liberals.
D) William Graham Sumner and other Social Darwinists.
E) Thomas Paine and other early or classical liberals.

Question 51

According to Robert Nozick, the only state or government that can be justified is one that

A) adjusts taxation levels to promote prosperity by "fine tuning" the economy.
B) ensures that the least advantaged people in society are as well off as they possibly can be.
C) protects its citizens against force and fraud.
D) protects the honor of men and the property of women.
E) both A and D are correct.

Question 52

Which of the following is most likely to support affirmative-action programs?

A) neoclassical liberal
B) welfare liberal
C) cultural conservative
D) individualist conservative
E) religious right conservative

Question 53

Who among the following are likely to support the decriminalization of drugs such as marijuana?

A) traditional conservatives
B) libertarians
C) religious right conservatives
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 54

One of the dilemmas facing modern liberalism in the wake of 9/11 and the "war on terror" is whether, or to what extent,

A) markets should be regulated.
B) individuals should be free to pursue their own interests.
C) liberal societies should tolerate individuals who hold (and possibly act upon) intolerant beliefs.
D) all of the above are correct.
E) none of the above is correct.

Question 55

Libertarians are likely to advocate

A) privatization of public services.
B) selling public roads, beaches, and lands to private buyers.
C) minimal or no government regulation of markets.
D) all of the above are correct.
E) none of the above is correct.

Question 56

Adam Smith was opposed to all governmental intervention in or regulation of the economy.

Question 57

Libertarians tend to favor almost unrestricted liberty and all-out competition within the free market.

Question 58

The Social Darwinists favored unrestricted competition in order to ensure the survival of the fittest.

Question 59

According to the Harm Principle, government may legitimately prevent or punish actions that some people find upsetting or offensive.

Question 60

The first welfare state was created by a conservative.

Question 61

John Stuart Mill believed that individual freedom should be limited to satisfy the will of the majority.

Question 62

The U.S. Constitution guarantees the rights to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Question 63

Bernard Mandeville believed that "private vices" lead to "publick benefits."

Question 64

Libertarians believe that taxing some people for the benefit of others is a form of forced labor.

Question 65

Welfare liberals want to sell or "privatize" most public services, including schools and roads.

Question 66

Adam Smith was strongly opposed to tax-supported public works, such as schools and roads.

Question 67

T. H. Green thought that "negative" liberty is more important than "positive" liberty.

Question 68

The Social Darwinists were among the first socialists.

Question 69

The welfare state was a socialist invention.

Question 70

Reform or welfare liberalism favors private property and presupposes a capitalist economy.

Question 71

Welfare liberalism is a form of socialism.

Question 72

Mill argued that the state could legitimately restrict or prohibit only actions that harm or threaten others.

Question 73

Bernard Mandeville and Adam Smith believed that human beings are motivated largely, though not exclusively, by self-interest.

Question 74

Libertarians hold that taxation for welfare programs is legalized theft.

Question 75

Libertarians favor privatizing most public services.

Question 76

Mill defines "harm" as any action that offends anyone.

Question 77

Libertarians are strong supporters of paternalism.

Question 78

Libertarians favor the deregulation of government-regulated industries and other enterprises.

Question 79

Matching
Fill in the blanks with the letter corresponding to the names or terms listed below. Some names or terms may be used more than once and others not at all.
-Compared the operation of the free market to the workings of an "invisible hand":

A)Aristotle
B) William Graham Sumner
C) Jeremy Bentham
D) Niccolò Machiavelli
E)Thomas Hobbes
F) John Locke
G)authoritarian
H) libertarian
I)John Stuart Mill
J) T. H. Green
K) Bernard Mandeville
L) John Dewey
M)Murray Rothbard
N)communitarian
O) Adam Smith
P) Alexis de Tocqueville

Question 80

Matching
Fill in the blanks with the letter corresponding to the names or terms listed below. Some names or terms may be used more than once and others not at all.
-Formulated the harm principle:

A)Aristotle
B) William Graham Sumner
C) Jeremy Bentham
D) Niccolò Machiavelli
E)Thomas Hobbes
F) John Locke
G)authoritarian
H) libertarian
I)John Stuart Mill
J) T. H. Green
K) Bernard Mandeville
L) John Dewey
M)Murray Rothbard
N)communitarian
O) Adam Smith
P) Alexis de Tocqueville