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Routledge Revivals J.S. Mill First published in 1974. As logician, economist, political theorist, This page intentionally left blank practical politician and active champion of social freedom, John Stuart Mill is a figure of continuing importance. In this book the author does full justice to the range of Mill’s achievements, providing an intro- ductory guide to his most important and best known writings includ- ing Autobiography, A System of Logic, Utilitarianism, Liberty, and The Subjugation of Women. In their treatment of his works, the author seeks to emphasise Mill’s approach to those issues — education, the conflict between social order and individual freedom, the unre- solved state of the social sciences, rights and duties of citizens in a democratic state — which remain most alive to us today. At the same time Mill is seen as part of his own age, responding to the anxieties that beset his contemporaries. This book will be of interest to students of politics and philosophy. This page intentionally left blank J.S. Mill Alan Ryan Firstpublishedin1974 byRoutledge&KeganPaul Thiseditionfirstpublishedin2016byRoutledge 2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,Oxon,OX144RN andbyRoutledge 711ThirdAvenue,NewYork,NY10017 RoutledgeisanimprintoftheTaylor&FrancisGroup,aninformabusiness ©1974AlanRyan All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now knownor hereafterinvented,includingphotocopyingandrecording,orin any informationstorageorretrievalsystem,withoutpermissioninwritingfromthe publishers. Publisher’sNote Thepublisherhasgonetogreatlengthstoensurethequalityofthisreprintbut pointsoutthatsomeimperfectionsintheoriginalcopiesmaybeapparent. Disclaimer The publisher has made every effort to trace copyright holders and welcomes correspondencefromthosetheyhavebeenunabletocontact. ALibraryofCongressrecordexistsunderLCcontrolnumber:7481997 ISBN13:978-1-138-68334-1(hbk) ISBN13:978-1-315-54455-7(ebk) ISBN13:978-1-138-68336-5(pbk) Routledge Author Guides J. S. M ill by Alan Ryan New College Oxford Routledge & Kegan Paul London and Boston First published in 1974 by Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd Broadway House, 68-74 Carter Lane, London EC4V 5EL and 9 Park Street, Boston, Mass. 02108, USA Set in Monotype Bembo and printed in Great Britain by Cox & Wyman Ltd, London, Fakenham and Reading © Alan Ryan 1974 No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except Jor the quotation of brief passages in criticism ISBN 0 7100 7954 0 (c) 0 7100 7955 9 (p) Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 74-81997 Contents Preface xi Introduction i Difficulties of the history of ideas 2 James Mill 6 1 The Autobiography 1806-1826 9 An educative autobiography 9 The Early Draft 12 Utilitarianism and education 15 James Mill’s syllabus 19 Mill and Dickens 23 Youthful Benthamism 26 2 The Autobiography 1826-1840 29 ‘Mental Crisis’ 30 Its impact on Mill’s ideas 33 Doubts about utilitarianism 38 ‘The Spirit of the Age’ 40 Disillusionment with radicalism 44 Harriet Taylor 48 Mill’s literary criticism 50 ‘Bentham’ and ‘Coleridge’ 53 3 A System of Logic 59 Intuitionists and conservatives 60 Analysis of meaning 62 Mathematical truth 66 vii Contents The syllogism 70 Causation 74 Induction and its canons 79 Free-will and social science 84 False starts 89 Sociology 92 4 Utilitarianism 95 Its notoriety 95 Mill’s audience 96 Theological ethics 97 Intuitionist ethics 99 A logic of the imperative mood IOI The Art of Life 104 Utilitarianism 106 The need for first principles 107 Clarifications of the doctrine 109 Motives and intentions 113 Sanctions 114 The ‘proof’ of the principle of utility 116 Utility and justice 119 5 Liberty and The Subjection of Women 125 Harriet’s legacy 125 Elitism of Liberty 127 Truth or truths 129 Freedom and happiness 131 Liberty and its aims 133 Free inquiry and science 136 Religious freedom 139 Individuality in mass society 140 Duty and virtue 143 Paternalism 146 Saints and heroes 147 Mill’s successors 150 Extending interferences 153 Women’s liberation 154 6 The Principles of Political Economy 159 The interest of Mill’s economics 159 Methodological views 161 vm Contents Distribution and property 163 Wages, unionism and population 166 The role of government 170 Education 175 Poor relief, colonies and public utilities 177 The stationary state 180 Mill’s critique of socialism 183 7 Representative Government 190 Mill’s changing attitude to democracy 191 The East India Company and bureaucracy i93 Progress and political institutions 196 The defence of democratic politics 199 Mill’s neglect of party politics 203 The role of expertise 204 Minorities and their representation 207 Plural voting 210 The ballot 212 Nationalism 213 Mill and ‘democratic revisionism’ 215 8 Hamilton, Comte and Religion 218 Background of Mill’s later work 218 Matter 220 Mind 224 ‘To hell I will go’ 227 Comte’s philosophy of science 228 Comte’s illiberalism 230 The religion of humanity 233 ‘The Utility of Religion’ 236 ‘Nature’ 239 ‘Theism’ 241 Notes 248 Bibliography 270 Index 279 IX
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