Liberalism – what’s in a name?

Abstract

My title recalls the moment from the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet when Juliet briefly imagines that Romeo could be separated from his name, that he could be appreciated for what he is rather than for what he is called: ‘Tis but thy name’, she laments, ‘that is my enemy; Thou art thyself, though not a Montague’. The audience, of course, knows better – as does Juliet herself, although she would prefer to believe otherwise. Thus, while Juliet’s immediate answer to the question suggests that what matters is not the name but the qualities of the thing to which the name is attached, the unfolding tragedy of Shakespeare’s play presents a very different view, showing that some names have substantial social and political significance.