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James Mill was born in 1773 and John Stuart Mill died in 1873. He believed that an action was right provided it maximised the greatest happiness of the greatest number of people. John Stuart Mill, (born May 20, 1806, London, England—died May 8, 1873, Avignon, France), English philosopher, economist, and exponent of utilitarianism. He was an advocate of utilitarianism, the ethical theory that was systemised by his godfather, Jeremy Bentham, but adapted to German romanticism.It is usually suggested that Mill is an advocate of negative liberty. In 1866 John Stuart Mill presented a petition to the House of Commons of over 1500 signatures which had been collected by the Women's Suffrage Committee in favour for women's suffrage. Available instantly. For 20 years, from 1836 (when his father died) to 1856, Mill had charge of the British East India Company’s relations with the Indian states, and in 1856 he became chief of the examiner’s office. x 21 in. At the age of eight he started Latin, the geometry of Euclid, and algebra and began to teach the younger children of the family. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Educated a home by his father, John Stuart had studied the works of Aristotle, Plato, Jeremy Bentham, Thomas Hobbes, David Ricardo and Adam Smith by the time he had reached the age of twelve. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Mill suggests standards for the relationship between authority and liberty. He was prominent as a publicist in the reforming age of the 19th century, and remains of lasting interest as a logician and an ethical theorist. In 1865 the Kensington Society was formed. At the age of 21, Mill suffered a nervous breakdown. Read more. In 1858, following the Indian Mutiny, the East India Company was dissolved and its functions taken over by the British government. Life and Works of John Stuart Mill: Three persons built up the structure of utilitarianism. After a short probation he was promoted in 1828 to assistant examiner. by John Stuart Mill | 21 Dec 2020. John Stuart Mill MP was a philosopher and political economist who argued for women's equality. John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) is considered the most influential English-speaking philosopher of the nineteenth century. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. John’s father, James Mill, was an ardent reformer and personal friend of Jeremy Bentham, the famous utilitarian philosopher. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. His father was friendly with Jeremy Bentham, whose utilitarian philosophy was a huge influence on Mill. Artist back to top. He slips slowly into socialism and is the originator of the thoughtless confounding of liberal and socialist ideas that led to the decline of English liberalism and to the undermining of the living standards of the English people. Corrections? On his return in 1821 he added to his work the study of psychology and of Roman law, which he read with John Austin, his father having half decided on the bar as the best profession open to him. Mill was a philosopher, political economist and social reformer who had a huge impact on 19th century thought. Mill Melvyn Bragg discusses the 19th century political philosopher John Stuart Mill and his treatise On Liberty which is one of the sacred texts of liberalism. John Stuart Mill was born on May 20th, 1806, in London. north-central London, the eldest of nine children of the Scottish philosopher and historian James Mill (1773 - 1836) From his earliest days he spent much time in his father’s study and habitually accompanied him on his walks. John Stuart Mill was an English philosopher, economist, and exponent of utilitarianism. John Stuart Mill. He was prominent as a publicist in the reforming age of the 19th century and remains of lasting interest as a logician and an ethical theorist. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. John Stuart Mill, the eldest son of the philosopher, James Mill, was born in London on 20th May, 1806. He thus inevitably acquired many of his father’s speculative opinions and his father’s way of defending them. He also gained a thorough acquaintance with the French language. BBC © 2014 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. The autobiography concentrates on Mill's personal and intellectual development, including the mental crisis he suffered in his youth, which led him to reject many of … About the age of 12, he began a thorough study of Scholastic logic, at the same time reading Aristotle’s logical treatises in the original. Mill seized every chance for exposing departures from sound principle in Parliament and courts of justice. Mill defines utilitarianism as a theory based on the principle that "actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness." Unknown Binding Currently unavailable. In the following year he was introduced to political economy and studied the work of the Scottish political economist and philosopher Adam Smith and that of the English economist David Ricardo. He returned in 1865 when he was elected as member of parliament for Westminster. Utilitarianism, by John Stuart Mill, is an essay written to provide support for the value of utilitarianism as a moral theory, and to respond to misconceptions about it. Born in 1806, John Stuart Mill was the eldest son of James Mill and Harriet Barrow (whose influence on Mill was vastly overshadowed by that of his father). She was a great influence on his work, particularly in the area of women's rights, of which she was an early advocate. Chapter IV. While the training the younger Mill received has aroused amazement and criticism, its most important aspect was the close association it fostered with the strenuous character and vigorous intellect of his father. He died on 7 May 1873. John Stuart Mill "Born in London in 1806, son of James Mill, philosopher, economist and senior official in the East India Company. He turned to poetry for consolation, particularly that of William Wordsworth. John Stuart Mill is an epigone of classical liberalism and, especially in his later years, under the influence of his wife, full of feeble compromises. In 1822, Mill was given a job in the examiner's office of the East India Company, where his father also worked. In 1822 Mill had read P.-E.-L. Dumont’s exposition of Bentham’s doctrines in the Traités de Législation, which made a lasting impression upon him. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Speech of the late John Stuart Mill at the great meeting in favor of women's suffrage, held in the Music Hall, Edinburgh, January 12th, 1871. by John Stuart Mill | 1 Jan 1871. A summary of Part X (Section3) in 's John Stuart Mill (1806–1873). The duty of collecting and weighing evidence for himself was at every turn impressed upon the boy. James intended that his son carry on the radical utilitarian empiricist tradition, and this was reflected in his upbringing: John learned Greek and arithmetic at 3, and helped to edit his father’s book (the History of India) at 11. Now without a job, Mill moved to Avignon in France. Kindle Edition £2.22 £ 2. Some of John Stuart Mill’s notable works included Principles of Political Economy, Autobiography, Examination of Sir William Hamilton’s Philosophy, On Liberty, A System of Logic, The Subjection of Women, and Utilitarianism. Another outlet was opened up for him (April 1824) with the founding of the Westminster Review, which was the organ of the philosophical radicals. Sitter in 20 portraits. Omissions? The Great Reform Act of 1832 expanded the electorate but to ‘male persons' only. He was prominent as a publicist in the reforming age of the 19th century, and remains of lasting interest as a logician and an ethical theorist. In 1851, Mill married Harriet Taylor. He was educated exclusively by his father, who was a strict disciplinarian. He defended the freedom of individuals against absolute state power. concerned with the status of women in society, and he campaigned energetically to further the cause of equality between the sexes. In 1825 he began work on an edition of Bentham’s Rationale of Judicial Evidence (5 vol., 1827). Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, University of Auckland, New Zealand. James Mill was determined to mould John into a well‐​educated leader and an advocate of his reforming ideals. Author of. Though Mill accepts the utilitarian legacy of the Radicals, he transforms that … John Stuart Mill dominated liberal thought during the nineteenth century with insights offered into the harm principle, free will, the despotism of custom, experiments in living, utilitarianism, the marketplace of ideas and electoral reform. They had been close friends for 20 years, but were only able to marry when her first husband died. He was the son of James Mill, a friend of Jeremy Bentham’s who shared many of his principles. Utilitarianism, in normative ethics, a tradition stemming from the late 18th- and 19th-century English philosophers and economists Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill according to which an action (or type of action) is right if it tends to promote happiness or pleasure and wrong if it tends to produce unhappiness or pain—not just for the performer of the action but also for everyone else affected by it. 22. He wrote many essays that created rules that people could use to decide what actions were good and bad. He divided his time between Avignon and London, studying and writing. In his writing, Mill championed individual liberty against the authority of the state. But he did not receive the impress passively and mechanically. He also began to shape his own philosophical views. Other relevant works include: Alexander Bain (a friend of Mill’s), John Stuart Mill (1882); M. St.J. Mill was not re-elected in the general election of 1868, so he returned to France. John Stuart Mill, c.1870 His father’s friend, the philosopher Jeremy Bentham, had done much to develop and popularise the theory, and Mill refined it in a book called Utiltarianism. English philosopher and economist John Stuart Mill was born in his father’s house in Pentonville, London, on May 20, 1806. On Liberty is a philosophical essay by the English philosopher John Stuart Mill. A philosopher and economist, Mill is best known for his political and moral works including On Liberty. Updates? Find out more about how the BBC is covering the. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. The impression was confirmed by the study of the English psychologists and also of two 18th-century French philosophers—Étienne Bonnot de Condillac, who was also a psychologist, and Claude-Adrien Helvétius, who was noted for his emphasis on physical sensations. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Stuart-Mill, Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Biography of John Stuart Mill, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - John Stuart Mill, The Library of Economics and Liberty - Biography of John Stuart Mill, The Victorian Web - Biography of John Stuart Mill, John Stuart Mill - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up), “Considerations on Representative Government”, “Examination of Sir William Hamilton’s Philosophy”, “Essays on Some Unsettled Questions of Political Economy”. John Stuart Mill was born in London on 20 May 1806. This intention, however, was abandoned, and in 1823, when he had just completed his 17th year, he entered the examiner’s office of the India House. John Stuart Mill was a philosopher, an economist, a senior official in the East India Company and a son of James Mill. Please select which sections you would like to print: While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. In 1869 Mill published his famous essay 'The Subjection of Women', in favour of equality of the sexes. Utilitarian philosopher In the early part of the nineteenth century John Stuart Mill, a prominent thinker and writer, promoted a way of deciding moral issues known as Utilitarianism. 1 He was acquainted with the satirist Lucian, the historian of philosophy Diogenes Laërtius, the Athenian writer and educational theorist Isocrates, and six dialogues of Plato. G. und Stuart Mill. Copious extracts from a diary kept at this time show how methodically he read and wrote, studied chemistry and botany, tackled advanced mathematical problems, and made notes on the scenery and the people and customs of the country. On Liberty. James Mill was the friend of Bentham and father of J. S. Mill. John Stuart Mill was born in 1806, in London. John Stuart Mill was born in London on 20 May 1806. There was a gap of a century. 6/John Stuart Mill Chapter 1 Introductory The subject of this Essay is not the so-called Liberty of the Will, so unfortunately opposed to the misnamed doctrine of Philosophical Ne-cessity; but Civil, or Social Liberty: the nature and limits of the power which can be legitimately exercised by society over the individual. John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), Social philosopher, economist and advocate of women's rights. Sitter back to top. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. (660 mm x 533 mm) overall Given by George Frederic Watts, 1895 Primary Collection NPG 1009. replica by George Frederic Watts oil on canvas, 1873 26 in. One of his first efforts was a solid argument for freedom of discussion in a series of letters to the Chronicle on the prosecution of Richard Carlile, a 19th-century English radical and freethinker. He was also an outspoken feminist, publishing The Subjection of Women in … From May 1820 until July 1821, Mill was in France with the family of Sir Samuel Bentham, brother of Jeremy Bentham, the English utilitarian philosopher, economist, and theoretical jurist. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. “A person may cause evil to others not only by his actions but by his inaction, and in either case he … Mill’s Utilitarianism. His childhood was not unhappy, but it was a strain on his constitution and he suffered from the lack of natural, unforced development. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. By his eighth year he had read in the original Greek Aesop’s Fables, Xenophon’s Anabasis, and the whole of the historian Herodotus. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of John Stuart Mill (1806–1873) and what it means. He had also read a great deal of history in English. He took part eagerly in discussions with the many individuals of distinction who came to his father’s house and engaged in set discussions at a reading society formed at the home of English historian George Grote in 1825 and in debates at the London Debating Society, formed in the same year. This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. of The Limits to The Authority of Society Over The individual. John Stuart Mill (20th May 1806 – 8th May 1873), a British philosopher and political economist, was an influential liberal thinker of the 19th century. Alt-Englische und Neu-Englische Staatsanschauung. This page has been archived and is no longer updated. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so. Mill's thinking on women's rights was influenced by his wife, Harriet Taylor Mill (1807-1858). His father was James Mill, a Scottish philosopher who gave his son an intensive education, beginning with the study of Greek at the age of three. began the study of Greek at the age of 3 and took up Latin between his seventh and Mill gave a vivid and moving account of his life, and especially of his extraordinary education, in the Autobiography 1873 that he wrote towards the end of his life. John Stuart Mill, (born May 20, 1806, London, England—died May 8, 1873, Avignon, France), English philosopher, economist, and exponent of utilitarianism. Soon after, in 1822–23, Mill established among a few friends the Utilitarian Society, taking the word, as he tells us, from Annals of the Parish, a novel of Scottish country life by John Galt. He was employed by the company for more than 30 years, eventually becoming head of his department, but his job allowed him plenty of time for writing. He was considered a radical in parliament because of his support for equality for women, compulsory education, birth control and land reform in Ireland. His main reading was still history, but he went through all the Latin and Greek authors commonly read in the schools and universities and, by the age of 10 could read Plato and the Athenian statesman Demosthenes with ease.  © John Stuart Mill, c.1870 © Mill was a philosopher, political economist and social reformer who had a huge impact on 19th century thought. Two newspapers welcomed his contributions—The Traveller, edited by a friend of Bentham’s, and The Morning Chronicle, edited by his father’s friend John Black. Read more. Published in 1859, it applies Mill's ethical system of utilitarianism to society and state. Taken together, no theorist has contributed more to liberalism than John Stuart Mill. The eldest son of the British historian, economist, and philosopher James Mill, he was born in his father’s house in Pentonville, London. They are Bentham, James Mill, and John Stuart Mill. John Stuart Mill was a British philosopher who lived during the first half of the 1800s. She died in 1858 and the following year he published 'On Liberty', his most famous work, which they had written together and which he dedicated to her. The Liberal philosopher John Stuart Mill MP (1806-1873) was elected MP for the City of Westminster in 1865 on a platform including votes for women. Taken together, no theorist john stuart mill contributed more to liberalism than john Stuart Mill died in.... It means Mill was born in London on 20th May, 1806 in!, you are agreeing to news, offers, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans the. His father ’ s father, James Mill was born in 1806, in favour equality! 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