The Evolution of Modern Liberty: An Insightful Study of the Birth of American Freedom and How It Spread Overseas

by George L. Scherger

Published for the first time in 1904, The Evolution of Modern Liberty was originally intended to be a comparison study of the American and French bills of rights. However, Scherger expanded his volume into much more—a timeless look at the modern idea of liberty and the steps taken to get there.
A fragment of history in and of itself, this classic of early twentieth-century historical study is a must-have for the collection of any history or political buff. Coming up on its 110th year of publication, this volume is a fascinating insight on the notion of liberty, published during a time when it was still unfolding.

Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

308 pages, Paperback

First published November 4, 2014

Reviews

[Ruby Jusoh · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Reflection) Surprisingly insightful! Sometimes, it is important for me to touch base with Western ideas. Being a postcolonial student, I feel very cautious these days reading white people’s writings for they can be imposing. Nonetheless, the author of the book successfully explains the history of the idea of liberty in western societies from Greek, Roman to French, English and American. Of course, people of colour are completely excluded from the discussion. Ugh. The book was written almost 100 years ago and we must keep that in mind.
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📚 The Evolution of Modern Liberty by George L. Scherger
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A LOT OF THINKERS AND PHILOSOPHERS ARE DISCUSSED! I love it because the explanation helps me understand these ideas better. Reading the original texts can be confusing. Ideas and philosophy evolve across time and space. Hence, it is vital that we know where ideas came from to fully understand the contexts of their creation. There are a few parts
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1) Natural law
2) Doctrine of the sovereignty of the people
3) The American Bill of Rights
4) The French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
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I underlined so many statements. Let me just share with you some of my favourites –
- The despotism of the State prevented the growth of private rights.
- Natural Law thus limits the omnipotence of the State.
- Feudalism divided medieval society into sharply separated classes.
- Voltaire opposed feudal dues of all sorts, and thinks there is no possible reason for the distinction between the nobles and the commons, which was in its origin a distinction between lords and slaves.
- Personal liberty consists in the right of changing one’s situation or habitation according to will.
- Locke said that tyranny is the exercise of power beyond right, the use of government not for the good of the citizens but for private advantage.
- ‘MAN IS BORN FREE, AND EVERYWHERE HE IS IN CHAINS’ is my favourite Rousseau quote.
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The book itself is not long. The language can be dry. However, it was written by an academician so it is rather expected. It also failed to mention how women were not given liberty and right! The non-acknowledgement is bad bad bad.

[Earl · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best works on freedom that I have read recently. I was in the middle of all things when I found out that this book was published over a century ago. Now I can say it's a timeless classic and a must for political philosophers and social theorists.