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Hero / Victim
“The Law” / “Rational Citizens”
Villain
“The Bad King”
Stakes
Liberty
The libertarian worldview “valorizes the individual, human rights, and respect for persons” (Simmons, 2020, p. 112). Someone who is narrating from the libertarian worldview will place a strong emphasis on an individual’s liberties and rights, and will bristle at any attempts—perceived or otherwise—to curtail them through coercion.
Whereas “the State” is the hero of the securitarian worldview, it is the animating source of the abuse of power in the libertarian worldview. The hero in this worldview is “the Law,” which protects “Rational Citizens” from overreach by “the State” into their individual liberties.
In this worldview, the villain can be caricatured as a “Bad King” (think Henry VIII and his use of state power to benefit his own private life). This isn’t because the villain is always literally a king, but because the abuse of power is seen as stemming primarily from some overarching institution (or its representative) that is using power tyrannically and infringing on the liberties and rights of its constituents.
The libertarian worldview should not be confused with the Libertarian Party in the United States, though the latter may indeed feel very comfortable narrating from this worldview. Like all root narratives, the libertarian worldview can appear in any sort of political or ideological agenda. It isn’t the position of the narrator within society that determines the root narrative at play, but rather the content of the narration.
The Libertarian Sub-Narratives
Like with the other root narratives, the libertarian sub-narratives will show just how malleable this worldview is.
As a reminder, each sub-narrative presents a different permutation of the sentence “The Victim is abused by the Villain.”
- Consent – “Rational Citizens are coerced by the Bad King.” (Libertarian vs. Securitarian)
- Property – “Rational Citizens are coerced by the Ignorant Masses.” (Libertarian vs. Egalitarian)
- Merit – “Rational Citizens are coerced by Dangerous Enemies.” (Libertarian vs. Dignitarian)
Consent
In the consent narrative, it is the “Bad King” who coerces people and infringes on their rights and liberties. This is an abuse of power that is sanctioned by some overarching, institutional authority (sometimes represented by a single person or a group of people). It is the kind of coercion that arises when an entity that is supposed to protect you ends up trampling on your rights in the process.
Some examples of this narrative include the following:
- repudiation of government overreach (e.g., in the form of mask mandates, abortion bans, etc.);
- criticism of human rights abuses;
- calls for societal consequences for sexual abusers (e.g., #MeToo), etc.
The consent narrative is the sub-narrative that most typifies the libertarian worldview. That is why the “Bad King” represents the villain not just of the consent narrative but also of the libertarian worldview as a whole.
Property
In the property narrative, it is the “Ignorant Masses” who coerce people and infringe on their rights and liberties. As opposed to “Rational Citizens,” who wisely understand that individual rights are paramount, the “Ignorant Masses” seem to believe that they are entitled to the fruits of other people’s labors.
Some examples of this narrative include the following:
- criticism of calls to “tax the rich”;
- arguments against economic redistribution;
- praise of “hustle culture” (wherein individuals are encouraged to do work that maximizes their own personal profit), etc.
Merit
In the merit narrative, it is “Dangerous Enemies” who coerce people and infringe on their rights and liberties. These enemies are people who, based on their membership in some affinity group, are perceived as believing that individual rights and liberties should be given up to benefit said affinity group.
Some examples of this narrative include the following:
- criticism of affirmative action policies;
- calls to “pick yourself up by your bootstraps”;
- praise for “self-made” millionaires and billionaires, etc.
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