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Abstract
Critics of classic liberalism assume that is radical individualist foundations are both necessary for its defense and its Achilles' heel. Radical individualism is the view that human individuals are, first and foremost, unique, particular beings with just one concern, namely, to advance their own goals. Critics of classical liberalism have said that its individuals are atomistic or asocial. Proponents of classical liberalism had often appeared to embrace an atomistic conception of the person because of their acceptance of the new science of classical mechanics. Whether or not anyone actually held the arid individualist view that has come to be associated with Hobbes is not important. What is crucial are the liabilities which critics have ascribed to this view. In ethics and politics, atomistic individualism goes against the grain. But the charges against individualism are open to serious criticism.