Liberty in Democratic Societies : Reflections from Short Stories

Abstract

This article examines liberty in democratic societies, which comes from various authors' perspectives through their short stories. These short stories present topics pertaining to human liberty as an individual and a collective member of society. Individual liberty pertains to an individual's ability to think and choose freely and participate in activities different from others using reason or logic. An individual with liberty is able to set goals for his or her life freely; refuse temptations that can be self-destructive; and live freely while still honoring other people's' freedom. Liberty expressed collectively pertains to how individuals are able to unite to confront social injustice from the government or other threatening elements of society. In summary, when people realize they have liberty and can exercise their Freedom whenever they are being controlled by unjust laws or regulations and are brave enough to make decisions for themselves, this practice is the true liberty that comes from the human soul.