What Is John Stuart Mill's Understanding Of Freedom

Mill's understanding of freedom values the desires and goals of the each individual in a community. He states that "the only freedom which deserves the name is that of pursuing our own good, in our own way." By this, Mill is saying that freedom should guarantee liberty of rights based on personal interests and desires; it is evident that he puts a significant emphasis on individuality. Mill demonstrates that people should be allowed to do whatever they want by stating that states do not have the legitimate power to limit the freedom of its people, as long as it does not violate the harm principle. The reason why Mill endorses individual diversity is because he believes that the will of a society only reflects the will of politically active members of the society; this goes back to his criticism of a government with the tyranny of the majority. To sum up, Mill's understanding of freedom as allowing people to "pursue their own good in their own ways" results from his emphasis on individualism and harm principle while rejecting the idea of the majority rule.
Another reason why Rousseau would disapprove of Mill's understanding of freedom is because Rousseau believes that people should prioritize the good of the society as a whole. Moreover, he argues that, although people have to give up some of their physical freedom, they can enjoy liberty more by trying to contribute to the achievement of the general will. Therefore, Rousseau would criticize Mill's idea of freedom as allowing people to pursue their own goals because Rousseau values the presence of social contracts and endorses the idea of the general