GUIDE TO THE PHILOSOPHY 1938 - 1947.pdf - Rare Books at ...

520
POLITICS
on the permanent interests of man as a progressive being".
Assuming that it is desirable that human societies should
progress, Mill proceeds to point out that, if they are to do
so, liberty must be accorded to their members to pro*
pound, to receive, and to discuss any and every sort of
opinion.
Now, the opinions which those in authority have been
chiefly concerned to suppress are those which challenge
authority. The challenge of these opinions may be direct,
they may, that is to say, take the form ofan open denunciation
of government; or it may be indirect, as in the case of
opinions embodying a criticism of popularly received
views on some matter of political, social or religious dogma,
views which authority reflects and which it exists to foster.
On what grounds, then, Mill asks, may the free expression
of these resented opinions be not only defended but
demanded?
Mill's Claim for the Free Expression and Discussion of
Opinion. Mill points out that novel opinions will be
either true or false, or partly true and partly false. If they
are true and authority suppresses them, authority has
robbed mankind of truth. Authority usually defends itself
by saying: (i) We could not tell at the time whether it
was right or wrong, but it seemed to us to be wrong, and,
because wrong, harmful, (it) We are surely right to forbid
the propagation of harmful opinions, (m) Admittedly
we can never be quite sure what is harmful and what is
not, and it seems to be possible that in this case we may
have made a mistake. But (n>) this only means that our
judgment, being human, is fallible; this we admit, but the
possible fallibility of our judgment is no ground
for not
exercising it. (v) Being in authority, we have to act, and
in order to do so we must assume that our opinions, which '
are also the received opinions of the populace, arc true.
To this Mill answers: "There is the greatest difference
between presuming an opinion to be true, because, with
every opportunity for contesting it, it has not been refuted,