Both Harold Laski and C. B. Macpherson attempted to reconcile elements of liberalism and Marxism in their work. Macpherson offered a clearer and more precise argument about the ways in which capitalist market relations frustrate freedom, equality and the development of the individual. Laski provided a clearer and more consistent account of human nature, which is necessary to sustain such an argument. Macpherson, in turn, reformulated the distinction between negative and positive liberty, which had remained an unresolved problem in Laski's account of human nature. The respective strengths of Laski and Macpherson may be combined to provide a coherent and cogent ideological position.