iat maintains the following relationship between individuals and government, ôLife, faculties, productsùin other words, individuality, liberty, propertyùthis is man...these three gifts from God precede all human legislation, and are superior to it. Life, liberty, and property do not exist because men have made laws. On the contrary, it was the fact that life, liberty, and property existed beforehand that cause men to make laws in the first placeö (Primacy, 2003, 1).
The views of Benjamin Constant were part of the formation of democracy as a form of government, with individual liberty untouched by government. He viewed LockeÆs social theory contract as something that jeopardizes individual freedom. He argued for the need for a constitution to limit the powers of government and felt that ôThe social contract, so often invoked in favor of liberty, is the most terrible auxiliary of every for of despotismö (Constant, 1872, 280).
According to Cannistraro (et al. 1999), John MillÆs On Liberty represents ôthe most complete statement of his belief in the inherent value of individuals and their actions, while it also warns against the tyranny of the majorityö (831). MillÆs views in On Liberty demonstrate support for the fact that individuals are better at making decisions concerning their welfare better than government. Mill therefore argued for limited government and warned of the dangers of majority opinion that could silence minority voices. Mill regarded personal freedom under a legitimate government concerned with the greatest good as both necessary and possible. He stated that the purpose of manÆs life, as perceived by his reason, was the development of his highest faculties. Each individual should have the utmost freedom to pursue his personal happiness in relation to society and the state. Mill argues that the only purpose for which power can be exercised over any member of a civilized community against his wil...