A Study On The Liberalism Theory Of Leonard Trelawney Hobhouse

Leonard Trelawney Hobhouse ( 1864-1929) , British philosopher, political theorist, Sociologist of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, was especially a Representative member of the British New Liberalism theorists . He developed J.S Mill and T.H Green' theory of the Liberalism and tried to explain the "Social Harmony" and "Liberal Socialism" theory with the Sociology. This article will make an full scan of Hobhouse's Liberalism Theory and make a critical review.There are four chapters in this article:The first chapter makes a brief description of Hobhouse's life and background of the times and the ideological origins. The British of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century was a changing world. During this period, the state was required to make more interference in economy and social affairs by many scholars. Hobhouse was one of them. He was born in a wealth family and played a lot attention to the poor people. He was not only a Liberalism theorist but also a all his life. He was a student in Oxford University and then a teacher in his early time. He became a main representative of British New Liberalism Theorists in his later years. He was influenced by the idea of Comte, Spencer, J.S.Mill and T.H.Green.The second chapter discussed the Hobhouse's view of liberty. Hobhouse recognized social freedom as the core issue of liberalism. Liberty should be the basis of the development of the human spirit and the necessary conditions for Social Harmony. He summed up the history of liberalism with the elements of liberalism has become a kind of social elements. This chapter also discussed the relationship between liberty and equality, and discussed "equal opportunities" and "equality of proportion" should work together to achieve real equality.The third chapter discussed the Hobhouse's view of society. Hobhouse used sociology to study political theory; the basis of his concept of society is "organic community" and "the common good". Hobhouse also proposed the "Social Harmony" as a measure of its The criterion of social progress.The fourth chapter discussed the Hobhouse's view of the state and its "liberal socialism" point of view, Hobhouse the state is seen as a historical evolution of the process. In the relationship between individuals and countries are harmonious, on the one hand the state should keep responsibility of the individual, not only to protect individuals belonging to the spirit of the free areas of the field, but also play an active role in strengthening intervention functions, and the other hand the individual should also undertake obligations. He considered that country's duties include protecting the individual's life and property safety, build public utilities and so on.The conclusion part is the evaluation of Hobhous's theory; It summed up the contribution and the limitations of Hobhouse's theory, and use the British Liberal Party's decline in history as an example to study the new liberalism theory's dilemma in the real application.