Tory 'society'

Joyce McMillan (Opinion, 17 April) makes much of Margaret Thatcher's oft-quoted remark that "there is no such thing as society", to which Mrs T added "only individual men and women".

The Shorter Oxford Dictionary offers ten definitions of "society" so it is a word whose meaning has to be taken from its context.

My understanding is that Mrs Thatcher was responding to a claim, which was often made at the time, that so-and-so was not responsible for his misdemeanours as it was all "the fault of society".

Her point was that, no matter what our own circumstances, each of us is responsible in the final analysis for our own actions – a proposition with which many would agree and which could be said to be the basis of criminal law and, indeed, moral behaviour.

S BECK

Craigleith Drive

Edinburgh