Question

Why would individualism (we believe in personal responsibilities) might not be supported by everyone?

Answer 1

Note: This response is in UK English, please paste the response to MS Word and you should be able to spot discrepancies easily. You may elaborate the answer based on personal views or your classwork if necessary. Also, your teacher has not provided any context to the broad term “individualism.” For example, individualism within a family. I have therefore picked my own context to give the response some structure.

(Answer) Individualism is a principle that entails a person being responsible for their own well-being. This individual is independent and self-reliant. Furthermore, individualism is when an individual is free from a collective or state control.

For a long time, individualism has been synonymous with the west, or rather certain prominent parts of the west. This is probably because countries like the US, Canada, the UK and several powers of the west were the first to attain democracy. Certain nations in the east were still struggling with autocracy, communism, socialism and other patterns of society.

Under a democratic rule, an individual has the right to work for their own well-being, free from subjugation, abuse or anything that might hinder their freedom. These precepts were the outline of individualism.

Today, several nations like India, Japan and others have their own stable government. However, a country like China is still communist. China, for instance, justifies keeping an eye on their media and communication by claiming it is necessary to counter anarchist or hostile communication and individuals before they cause harm. For a community like China, individualism is not as popular as collectivism.

In such a society, the estates of the media, judiciary and the executive branch are interdependent on each other to bring about a collective attitude within the populace of the country and within the framework of the constitution itself.