Acore doctrine of liberalism holds that all individuals share a capacity for reason and self-government. the theory of developmental history, however, modifies this universalism with the notion that these capacities only emerge at a certain stage of civilization (mccarthy 2009). for example, according to john stuart mill (hereafter mill), savages do not have the capacity for self-government because of their excessive love of freedom. serfs, slaves, and peasants in barbarous societies, on the other hand, may be so schooled in obedience that their capacity for rationality is stifled. only commercial society produces the material and cultural conditions that enable individuals to realize their potential for freedom and self-government. according to this logic, civilized societies like great britain are acting in the interest of less-developed peoples by governing them. imperialism, from this perspective, is not primarily a form of political domination and economic exploitation but rather a paternalistic practice of government that exports "civilization" (e. g. modernization) in order to foster the improvement of native peoples. despotic government (and mill doesn’t hesitate to use this term) is a means to the end of improvement and ultimately self-government.