Assignment 10

I agree that women have the right to be topless without being arrested. In fact, I agree with Mill in that we should all have the right to live our life however we want to as long as we are not harming others. I believe Mill would agree that women have the right to be topless. If they are not permitted to be topless outdoors, the law would be violating their liberty of tastes and pursuits. They are being kept from having their own experiences.

I think these types of laws remind us how many layers there are in society. By layers, I mean social norms and laws that create social norms. As extreme as it sounds, I believe a society that really respects individualism should permit people to walk around without wearing any clothes. It sounds crazy because we are desensitized to social norms. In an alien world, some may see us eating animal meats everyday and look at us like we are crazy. Others may see us watch television and think we are crazy for doing that as well. Some may be confused by our idolization of pop stars. There is no doubt that certain actions are encouraged in society while others are not. The laws should protect the people and nothing more.

Women being able to walk around topless may be a shocking sight to some, but I don't think it really should be one if you strip away all of society's expectations (as long as you don't violate Mill's harm principle). I believe that with more liberties we are allowed to have, more people will feel comfortable being themselves in public and let go of social expectations.