John Stuart Mill | |
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 1873 portrait by George Frederic Watts | |
| Member of Parliament for City of Westminster | |
| In office 25 July 1865 – 17 November 1868 Serving with Robert Grosvenor | |
| Preceded by | De Lacy Evans |
| Succeeded by | William Henry Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 20 May 1806 Pentonville, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 7 May 1873 (aged 66) Avignon, Vaucluse, France |
| Political party | Liberal |
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| Alma mater | University College London |
Philosophy career | |
| Era | |
| Region | Western philosophy |
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| Utilitarianism |
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John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873)[1] was an English philosopher, political economist, politician and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of liberalism, he contributed widely to social theory, political theory, and political economy. Dubbed "the most influential English-speaking philosopher of the nineteenth century" by the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,[2] he conceived of liberty as justifying the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state and social control.[3] Mill advocated political and social reforms such as proportional representation, emancipation of women, and the development of labor organizations and farm cooperatives. The Columbia Encyclopedia 5th ed. says of him “at times Mill came close to socialism, a theory repugnant to his predecessors.“ Mill was a proponent of utilitarianism, an ethical theory developed by his predecessor Jeremy Bentham. He contributed to the investigation of scientific methodology, though his knowledge of the topic was based on the writings of others, notably William Whewell, John Herschel, and Auguste Comte, and research carried out for Mill by Alexander Bain. He engaged in written debate with Whewell.[4]
A member of the Liberal Party and author of the early feminist work The Subjection of Women, Mill was also the second member of Parliament to call for women's suffrage after Henry Hunt in 1832.[5][6]
- ^ Thouverez, Emile. 1908. Stuart Mill (4th ed.) Paris: Bloud & Cie. p. 23.
- ^ Macleod, Christopher (14 November 2017). "John Stuart Mill". In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. Archived from the original on 6 March 2024.
- ^ "John Stuart Mill's On Liberty". victorianweb. 6 November 2000. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
On Liberty is a rational justification of the freedom of the individual in opposition to the claims of the state to impose unlimited control and is thus a defence of the rights of the individual against the state.
- ^ Macleod, Christopher. "John Stuart Mill". Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Archived from the original on 30 May 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
- ^ "Orator Hunt and the first suffrage petition 1832". UK Parliament.
- ^ "John Stuart Mill and the 1866 petition". UK Parliament.