Did all four of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms promote liberty? First, let’s take a quick look at what Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms are. According to National Archives, “Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union Address, commonly known as the “Four Freedoms” speech. In it he articulated a powerful vision for a world in which all people had freedom of speech and of religion, and freedom from want and fear. It was delivered on January 6, 1941 and it helped change the world.” This speech must have been very influential back then if it helped to change the whole world. But, the speech says “Four Freedoms”, so what are the four freedoms mentioned in this speech? According to Wikipedia, “Freedom of Speech, by Booth Tarkington (February 20, 1943). Freedom of Worship, by Will Durant (February 27, 1943). Freedom from Want, by Carlos Bulosan (March 6, 1943). Freedom from Fear, by Stephen Vincent Benét (March 13, 1943; the date of Benét’s death).” So there is the freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. We will look at each of these in turn.
Basically, the freedom of speech means that someone has the right to say what ever he/she wants without interference or retaliation from the government. This is also known as free speech, as talked about in the first amendment.
The freedom of worship literally means that you can decide whatever religion you want to follow and you follow it, and nobody can interfere with your choice.
The freedom from want basically means that you do not have to worry about where you will get food from, were you will get clothes from, how you will get a roof over your head, where your next meal will come from, etc.
The freedom from fear is pretty self-explanatory. This means that you can live your life however you want to and you do not have to live in fear of oppression, fear of other countries, fear of war, fear of military aggression, etc.
Did all four of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms promote liberty? According to National Archives, “Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union Address, commonly known as the “Four Freedoms” speech. In it he articulated a powerful vision for a world in which all people had freedom of speech and of religion, and freedom from want and fear.” So, we can easily see that all four of these speeches promoted freedom, but is freedom the same as liberty? According to the dictionary, freedom is “the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.” According to the dictionary, liberty is “the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one’s way of life, behavior, or political views.” So, is freedom the same as liberty? According to Wikipedia, “Sometimes liberty is differentiated from freedom by using the word “freedom” primarily, if not exclusively, to mean the ability to do as one wills and what one has the power to do; and using the word “liberty” to mean the absence of arbitrary restraints, taking into account the rights of all involved.” So, freedom is not necessarily the same as liberty, but I still say that all four of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms still promote liberty as well as freedom.