任何一种文明都是关于生活的一系列观念的集合，包括其民众视为标准、价值和理想的根本性、基础性观念，这些观念使他们有别于其他人。这一集合还包括次级的、衍生的观念。如前所述，西方文明中根本性的、独具特色的观念，包括个人主义与自由（自由权）的观念。经济学家兼哲学家路德维希·冯·米塞斯在其著作《自由与财产》中说："西方社会哲学的独特原则是个人主义。它旨在创造一个领域，在这个领域中，个人可以自由思考、选择和行动，而不受社会强制与压迫机器——国家——的干预所约束。西方文明的一切精神与物质成就，都是这种自由理念运作的结果。"

Any civilization is a collection of concepts about life, including the foundational, fundamental concepts which its people consider as criteria, values and ideals that makes them distinct from others. This collection also includes secondary, branch concepts. Amongst the fundamental, distinctive concepts of the Western civilization, as mentioned earlier, are the concepts of individualism and freedom (liberty). Economist and philosopher, Ludwig Von Mises, says in his book, Liberty and Property, “The distinctive principle of Western social philosophy is individualism. It aims at the creation of a sphere in which the individual is free to think, to choose, and to act without being restrained by the interference of the social apparatus of coercion and oppression, the State. All the spiritual and material achievements of Western civilization were the result of the operation of this idea of liberty.”.

个人主义这一观念的实质源于世俗主义。这一观念的产生，是因为西方人摆脱了教会和君主的权威。在那种权威之下，他的一切世俗事务与行为都与后世相联系。在那一体制中，他感到被强迫和压迫，他在生活中的意志与权利被压制。在那个时代，他的身份是依照社会的传统与信仰而塑造的。当他摆脱了这一权威后，他与后世的联系便断绝了。随后，他将全部注意力转向世俗事务。于是，他开始只活在这个世界之中，而不是活在这个世界之外，正如人们所说的那样。相反，他成为了这个世界的主人。个人的核心地位与主权，通过自然权利理论得到了强化。该理论断言，个人的权利源于他的天性，而社会并不赋予他这些权利。这些权利是固定地属于他的，它们是普遍的、根本的、不可剥夺的，也不可被废除。

The reality of the concept of individualism is that it emanates from secularism. The concept emanated when the Western man rid himself of the authority of the Church and kings, that connected all of his worldly affairs and actions to the Hereafter. Within the system, he felt coerced and oppressed, with his will and rights within life, crushed. In those times, his identity was shaped according to the traditions and beliefs of the society. When he rid himself of this authority, his connection with the Hereafter was severed. He then turned his full focus towards worldly affairs. So he started living in this world and not outside of this world, as they say. Instead, he became master of this world. The centrality and sovereignty of the individual was reinforced by the theory of natural rights. This theory asserts that the individual has his rights derived from his nature, whilst the society does not grant him such rights. These rights are fixed for him. They are universal, fundamental, inalienable and cannot be repealed.

因此，个体生而拥有其天赋权利，即其存在及其权利先于社会、法律、立法和约束而存在。据此，自由是人类存在的基础。个体在这些权利上是平等的，其中任何人都无权剥夺或废除他人的权利。由于个体在起源和本性上是非社会性的存在，一旦进入社会化状态，便容易陷入争执、冲突与混乱。因此，在这种情形下必须有一种组织，即个体之间通过相互让步组成一个共同体。这一共同体的目标是为所有人确立自由与平等的权利，也就是说，个体通过社会契约将其权利让渡给集体意志，而这一集体意志由国家体现。如此，通过相互订立的契约，统治权威成为一种人为的制度，其立法源自人民之间的规范性协议。国家随后对权利与自由进行规范，即国家依据人的意志而非神的意志施行统治，其中个体的意志是集体意志的根源和基础。

Thus individuals are born with their natural rights i.e. their existence with their rights precedes the existence of the society, its laws, legislations and constraints. Accordingly, freedom is the foundation of human existence. Individuals are equal in these rights. None of them deprives or repeals the rights of others. Since the individual is a non-social entity in terms of origin and nature, he is subjected to quarrel, conflict and chaos in the event of socialization. So there must be an organization in such a situation by making concessions with a community of individuals. This community's objective is to establish the right to freedom and equality for all i.e. the individual concedes his rights to the collective will, embodied by the state through social contract. In this way, through mutual contract, the ruling authority became a human institution that derives its legislations from the regulatory agreement between the people. The state then regulates the rights and freedoms, i.e. the state executes upon the basis of human will and not upon the basis of divine will, where the will of individuals is the root and basis of collective will.