Essay on Freedom

Man was born free, in the midst of nature, and he moved about under the broad blue sky. His mind too was free that flew like the birds on the wings of imagination.

When he lived in caves or on tree-tops with all sorts of beats and birds, he had freedom, but little security. He did not stay at a place for long, – his shelter was constantly threatened and food was a problem. So he moved from place to place for safer shelter and steadier supply of food.

Thus, though free man was extremely harassed and baffled and helpless against the hostile forces all around him. Obviously his savage and nomadic state left him a prisoner of his own freedom. So he decided to clip his wings and stop fleeing. He built his walled homes, the society and the state that took away much of his liberty as a price for his security.

Of course, man sacrificed his freedom willingly with a view to staying a crisis off – a crisis that threatened his very existence. When he had consolidated the gains of his sacrifice he began to resent the fetters. But in the meantime the problems of civilization had begun to crop up and he was caught in the web woven round his life. His relationship with nature and the animal world was already strained, and now his own social relations were too complicated to leave him happy.

With the passage of time the domination grew more ruthless and spread beyond clans and tribes. All over the world the civilized weapons were used by the stronger to subdue the weaker. As the slave-owners put the slaves in chains and the feudal lords made the millions toil for them, the stronger nations subjugated the weaker nations. Thus it was not the individuals along, the entire humanity lost the freedom, and a small class of people spread its tentacles everywhere to make people languish in dark cells.

But in spite of their weakness people nowhere did accept fetters willingly, nor did they ever stop grumbling and resenting when they lost their freedom. The slaves revolted and fought against their masters, the oppressive might of the autocratic feudal rulers could not stem the tide of revolution, and in the colonies the liberation struggles could not be crushed by the formidable imperialist forces.

However, the freedom that man once enjoyed in nature could not be regained. When a set of oppressors and their forces were removed, another set rose in their place, as phoenix rose from the ashes. Even in our modern democracies where rights of the people are guaranteed by the constitution, the freedom in the true sense remains a far cry – an irretrievable thing of the past.

It is not only political or social freedom that we have lost; freedom in all its senses is affected by the conditions in which we are made to live today. Economically we are tied to the spokes of a wheel, and we cannot even think of earning our living independently. The trappings of science and technology too are increasingly tightening the noose round our neck and, whether we like it or not, we are all becoming mechanical like the robots – losing our mind and the will in the process. It is no use bemoaning the loss of our natural freedom, for the erosion of our old values is complete and our attitude to life has changed beyond recognition. Freedom is still cherished dear and still the loss of it is resented, but this freedom is indistinguishable from a set of rights in modern society.