xxxxxJohn Stuart Mill, son of the philosopher James Mill, was the most influential philosopher and economist of his day. Like his father, he was a strong believer in Utilitarianism (the idea that governments should legislate to provide the greatest happiness for the greatest number), but he modified this theory, arguing that pleasure had to be valued by quality as well as quantity, and asserting that, morally speaking, “actions were right in proportion as they promote happiness, wrong as they produce the reverse”. In his On Liberty, published in 1859, he championed individual liberty against state interference, defending freedom of thought and discussion. And this belief in freedom was to be seen in his Principles of Political Economy, an earlier work in which he came out in favour of free enterprise and laissez-
JOHN STUART MILL 1806 -
Acknowledgement
Mill: by the English painter John Frederic Watts (1817-
xxxxxThe English theorist and intellectual John Stuart Mill was the most influential philosopher and economist of his day, remembered above all for his revision of Utilitarianism, and his defence of individual liberty. He also made important contributions in political science, ethics and logic, and later, as a member of parliament, he supported radical reforms such as compulsory education, birth control and equality for women.
xxxxxHe was born in London, the son of the philosopher James Mill, and proved something of a child genius. After a comprehensive and rigorous education conducted by his father, he began work in the East India Company in 1822, employed as his father’s clerk in the examiner’s office of the India House. He remained with the company until 1858, retiring as chief of the examiner’s office -
xxxxxIt was as a child that, under his father’s firm and constant guidance, Mill became, like him, a firm believer in Utilitarianism. Put forward by the English philosopher Jeremy Bentham towards the end of the 18th century, this theory held that in order to maximize pleasure and minimize pain, all legislation should aim to provide “the greatest happiness for the greatest number”. Around the age of 20, however, Mill suffered a nervous breakdown, being troubled among other things by the weaknesses he discerned in the Benthamite philosophy. As a result, in his Utilitarianism of 1863 he modified this somewhat vague, crude theory, arguing that, based on human experience, pleasure had to be valued by quality as well as quantity. Furthermore, he insisted that some pleasures, and particularly those of the mind, could be valued more highly than others, and that account needed to be taken of this fact. Finally, he introduced a more human, moral aspect into the theory, maintaining that a distinction had to be made between right and wrong. “Actions were right in proportion as they promote happiness, wrong as they produce the reverse.”
xxxxxIn his earlier work On Liberty, published in 1859, Mill championed the defence of individual liberty against any interference from the state and what he called “the tyranny of the majority”. The only duty of the state as he saw it was to provide a climate of order and security in which the individual, given complete freedom of thought and discussion, could be allowed to develop his own individuality. And in his Considerations on Representative Government, produced two years later, he strongly supported the principle of representative democracy, opposed legislation based on sectional interest, and urged that minority opinion be given adequate safeguards. However, liberal though his ideas were, he harboured doubts as to where progressive moves towards democratic government might eventually lead. He was uneasy about extensions in the franchise, for example, doubting the value of public opinion in a competitive society, and remaining in favour of an intellectual free-
xxxxxHis unswerving support for freedom was also to be seen in his writings on economics. In his Principles of Political Economy of 1848, a work which had a marked influence on economic thought throughout the remainder of the century, he put forward the arguments for and against government intervention in a country’s economic affairs, and then came down strongly in favour of free competition and laissez-
xxxxxAmong his other works were his two-
xxxxxAfter retiring from his post in the East India Company, Mill became a member of parliament in 1865, and took an active part in both foreign and home affairs. He supported the North in the American Civil War -
xxxxxIncidentally, there can be few children, if any, who have had such an extensive education as Mill. Trained exclusively by his father, he had mastered Greek by the age of seven, started courses in Latin, geometry and algebra the following year, and was being taught logic and economics at the age of 12. By the age of 17 he had gained a thorough knowledge of philosophy, psychology, law, chemistry and botany. It is perhaps little wonder that he suffered a nervous breakdown at the age of 20! ……
xxxxx…… Mill met Harriet Taylor, a married woman with children, in 1830. They became close friends -
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