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In late 1921, then secretary of commerce Herbert Hoover decided to distill from his experiences a coherent understanding of the American experiment he cherished. The result was the 1922 book American Individualism. In it, Hoover expounded and vigorously defended what has come to be called American exceptionalism: the set of beliefs and values that still makes America unique. He argued that America can make steady, sure progress if we preserve our individualism, preserve and stimulate the initiative of our people, insist on and maintain the safeguards to equality of opportunity, and honor service as a part of our national character. American Individualism asserts that equal opportunity for individuals to develop their abilities is "the sole source of progress" and the fundamental impulse behind American civilization for three, now four, centuries. More than ninety years have passed since this book was first published; it is clear, in retrospect, that the volume was partly motivated by the political controversies of the time. But American Individualism is not simply a product of a dim and receding past. To a considerable degree the ideological battles of Hoover's era are the battles of our own, and the interpretations we make of our past, particularly the years between 1921 and 1933, will mold our perspective on the crises of the present

Individualism is one of most criticized and least understood ideas in social and political thought. Is individualism the ability to act independently amidst a web of social forces? A vital element of personal liberty and a shield against conformity? Does it lead to or away from unifying individuals with communities? Individualism: A Reader provides a wealth of illuminating essays from the 17th to the early 20th centuries. In 26 selections from 25 writers individualism is explained and defended, often from unusual perspectives. This anthology includes not only selections from well-known writers, but also many lesser-known pieces--reprinted here for the first time--by philosophers, social theorists, and economists who have been overlooked in standard accounts of individualism. The depth and complexity of ideas about individualism are reflected in the six sections in this collection. The first examines individuality generally, with the following five detailing social, moral, political, religious, and economic individualism. Throughout, individualism is analyzed and defended through the lenses of classical liberalism, free-market libertarianism, individual anarchism, voluntary socialism, religious individualism, abolitionism, free thought, and radical feminism. Both richly historical and sharply contemporary, Individualism: A Reader provides a multitude of perspectives and insights on personal liberty and the history of freedom.

Rejecting the emphasis on economic-based individualism in sociology, the role of culture & tradition is addressed. In contrast to economics, which stresses the autonomous actions of individuals, sociology emphasizes the study of group norms & collective behaviors. Since the work of Karl Popper, however, the number of individualists in the field has continued to grow. In contrast to the Weberian tradition, it is argued that social action is not a product of acquired habits, but is actually a system of behavior circumscribed by community sanctions that reinforce tradition. While methodological individualism addresses the way in which society is built through the interaction of individuals, it fails to see how society exists with individuals as an internalized culture. Even in modern mass market societies, there is a plurality of conflicting cultural universes that coerce & inform behavior through collective cultural traditions. J. Cowie

In this journal Steve Maitzen has recently advanced an argument for Atheism premised on Theodical Individualism, the thesis that God would not permit people to suffer evils that were underserved, involuntary, and gratuitous for them. In this paper I advance reasons to think this premise mistaken.

The rejection of individualism in feminist thought is traced, claiming that the rejection of liberalism by most feminists was also, for many, a rejection of individualism. This position is developed drawing on the work of Nancy Chodorow, (eg, see The Reproduction of Mothering, Berkeley: U of California Press, 1978), among others, who described the differences in male & female psychology & moral reasoning. It is argued that the use of this work has shifted over time, with the rise of gynocentric feminism, from focusing on women's difficulties to celebrating female psychology as simply superior to male thought. While this work has been useful & stimulating, it has obscured our difficulties & differences, while failing to fully address the challenge of individualism as a cultural form that stamps both men & women. It is concluded that dealing with individualism means rediscovering what made it attractive & "obvious" for so many, & working to integrate those elements into a fuller, freer conception of individuality & autonomy. 35 References. Adapted from the source document.