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About this quote

What does it mean?
Stevenson suggests society has mistaken true freedom for a lack of discipline or responsibility.
In plain terms
People confuse freedom with just being easy and unconstrained.
What can you take from it?
Distinguish true freedom from unchecked ease or lack of responsibility.

Where it applies

  • social critique
  • cultural commentary
  • policy debates

Putting it to work

  • define freedom clearly
  • emphasize civic duty
  • challenge misconceptions

Questions to consider

  • What is the difference between freedom and license?
  • Does freedom require responsibility?

Another view

The statement offers no definition of what genuine freedom entails.

More from Adlai Stevenson

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  2. The first principle of a free society is an untrammeled flow of words in an open forum.

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  3. With the supermarket as our temple and the singing commercial as our litany, are we likely to fire the world with an irresistible vision of America's exalted p…

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