Socialism is an ideology that covers many diverse and divergent ideas and theories. It is therefore very difficult to define it as one ideology in particular. This is an important point because the question is a definitive statement about what socialism is. In fact, it is well summed up by Anthony Wright who wrote "There is no shortage of available definitions of what socialism is, but there is a shortage of agreed definitions." Because socialism covers such a wide range of ideas, the importance of equality and liberty varies between different theorists. Further to this, it is also worth noting that different theorists define the concepts of equality and liberty differently. However, most theories use either liberty or equality, or both, even if only in criticism of each other.

In an attempt to define socialism as an ideology, many socialists agree that a characteristic theme of socialism is a commitment to equality. However they all differ in their opinion over the extent of its importance. Some perceive it to be the goal of society whilst others see it simply as a means to an end. When socialism emerged as a recognizable ideology in the late eighteent

C. A. R. Crosland, The Future of Socialism, (Jonathan Cape, 1963)

"When liberty is construed, realistically, or implying, not merely a minimum of civil and political rights, but securities that the economically weak will not be at the mercy of the strong, [.......] a large measure of equality, so far from being inimical to liberty is essential to it."

He makes a further point that goes on to link equality and liberty by saying that an individual cannot be free if he is at the economic mercy of another. "Equality must not be merely apparent, must not apply merely to the sphere of the state, but must also be real, must also be extended to the social and economic spheres."

K. Marx, Critique of the Gotha Program

On the other hand, socialism also has many libertarian thinkers and ideas. Liberal socialists believe socialism to be the key to maximizing liberty through the self-direction of small communities. They want the removal of oppressive state and class structures in order to free the individual. Perhaps the most notable was Fourier who demanded complete freedom from crippling conventions and was quite prepared to have both the rich and the poor in his Utopia. He even went so far as to envisage the investment of capital for profit. However, libertarianism is often seen as too radical. "Libertarianism is the demand for freedom in the sense of the total absence of restraints, external and internal."

According to Marx, there is no liberal right for the individual to pursue greater personal wealth, but that this is not infringing on his freedom because under communism, men will find true freedom as social individuals. Marx doesn't believe there to be any conflict between his specific ideas of equality and liberty. However, Marx's own specific type of equality is the equality of distribution according to needs and not the

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