Mill is timid of "public opinion" for one main reason: that public opinion causes loss of individuality in society. To understand this in its entirety, one person must first understand Mill's logic behind this fear. Public opinion causes people to make the same decisions which others have already have made. This choice of following the same path is unconscious, due to the fact that pubic opinion is deeply imbedded in the truths that society hold; such as education. "Every extension of education promotes it (public opinion), because education brings people under common influences, and gives them access to the general stock of facts and sentiments" (98). In essence, a person beli

Mill suggests dealing with public opinion is a simple thought. Mill suggests creating an environment where everyone is strongly encouraged to be an individual, to think for themselves, and to be educated on an more individual basis. In this type of condition, people would pay less attention to what society thinks as a whole, and more attention to what each individual has to offer. "It will do so with increasing difficulty, unless that intelligent part of the public (individuals) can be made to feel it's value - to see that it is good there should be difference" (98). However people should not be such individuals that a society proves pointless, but individual thinkers giving thier input to the whole, still caring about other individuals. "It would be a great misunderstanding of this doctrine to suppose that it is of one selfish indifference, which pretends that human being have no business with each other's conduct in life, and that they should not concern themselves about that well-doing or well-being of one another, unless their own interest is involved" (98). In this sort of environment, it would be extremely difficult for public opinion to become a threat to liberty, due to the fact that people would be less likely to take a stance on some issue without their own reasoning behind thier choice. Mill also suggests that these sorts of conditions would be accepted by

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 930
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)