Liberty according to my metaphysics is a self-determining power in an intellectual agent. It implies thought and choice and power.

Stood off and on during the night determining not to come to anchor till morning fearing to meet with shoals continued our course in the morning and as the island was found to be six or seven leagues distant and the tide was against us it was noon when we arrived there.

The grounding in natural sciences which I obtained in the course of my medical studies including preliminary examinations in botany zoology physics and chemistry was to become decisive in determining the trend of my literary work.

In Britain by contrast we still think that class plays a part in determining a person's life chances so we're less inclined to celebrate success and less inclined to condemn failure. The upshot is that it's much easier to be a failure in Britain than it is in America.