Jeremy Bentham, James Mill and John Stuart Mill: English utilitarianism

  What is the nature of Constant's distinction between ancient and modern liberty and how does this distinction inform the constitutional recommendations Constant makes in his Principles of Politics? How important do you think Constant's arguments are? The philosophical school of utilitarianism was developed by Jeremy Bentham and later taken up by his friend James Mill. Utilitarianism offered a new foundation for liberalism, yet in many ways it also conflicted with traditional liberal concerns. An attempt to resolve some of these tensions was made by James Mill’s son John Stuart Mill. For this class you should think about the relation between utilitarianism and liberalism in general. You will already know something about utilitarianism but I will say something about Bentham’s general principles, illustrate how James Mill tried to apply them to the issue of government and then look at how J.S.Mill responded to the doctrines of both. Questions • What is utilitarianism and how does it relate to liberalism? • How does James Mill apply utilitarianism to the principles of government? How in particular does he apply utilitarianism to justify his views on representation? Do you agree with James Mill? • How does J S Mill view Bentham’s utilitarianism and how does his utilitarianism differ from that of Bentham? What are the criticisms he directs at Bentham as “a systematic and accurately logical half-man”? • Why is J.S.Mill attracted to the writings of Coleridge? What does it tell us about Mill’s brooder conceptions of the good life? Key reading Jeremy Bentham, “An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation”, in Jeremy Bentham and J.S.Mill, Utilitarianism and other Essays; James Mill, “Government”, in James Mill, Political Writings ; J.S Mill,“Bentham” and “Coleridge” in Jeremy Bentham and J.S.Mill, Utilitarianism and other Essays(Penguin). Also strongly recommended is J. S. Mill’s Autobiography (especially chapters I-III) I also recommend a reading of a new biography of Mill by Richard Reeves, John Stuart Mill: Victorian Firebrand. Additional reading J Bentham Fragment on Government J Bentham An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation JS Mill Utilitarianism JS Mill The Subjection of Women JS Mill Considerations on Representative Government J S Mill ‘M. de Tocqueville on Democracy in America’ in Dissertations and Discussions (Also available in modern collections, eg Gertrude Himmelfarb (ed), Mill: essays on Politics and Culture A Ryan (ed) Mill [texts by and essays on JS Mill] J.Dinwiddy, Bentham (a good introduction) E Halevy The Growth of Philosophic Radicalism H Hart Essays on Bentham [also with essays on J S Mill] T MulganUnderstanding Utilitarianism B Parekh (ed) Bentham’s Political Thought [selection of writings with useful introduction by editor] J PlamenatzThe English Utilitarians F Rosen Classical Utilitarianism from Hume to Mill James Steintrager, Bentham (another good, if rather dated, introduction) Leslie Stephen, The English Utilitarians (Vol 1: Bentham: Vol 2: James Mill: Vol 3: J.S.Mill). Written by the father of Virginia Woolf, this is still worth looking at. J Waldron (ed) Nonsense upon stilts: Bentham, Burke and Marx on the rights of man [selected writings and commentary] A Ryan J. S. Mill J Robson The Improvement of Mankind: The Social and Political Thought of John Stuart Mill W Thomas J. S. Mill J Riley Mill on Liberty R HallidayJohn Stuart Mill M. Cowling, Mill and Liberalism K Britton John Stuart Mill I Berlin ‘John Stuart Mill and the Ends of Life’ in Four Essays on Liberty J GrayMill on Liberty: A Defence J Rees John Stuart Mill’s On Liberty P Radcliff (ed) Limits of Liberty: Studies of Mill’s On Liberty J Schneewind (ed) Mill: A Collection of Critical Essays A Ryan ‘Two Concepts of Politics and Democracy: James and John Stuart Mill’ in M Fleisher Machiavelli and the Nature of Political Thought R Crisp Mill on Utilitarianism C Ten Mill on Liberty F Berger Happiness, Justice, and Freedom: The Moral and Political Philosophy of John Stuart Mill A Ryan The Philosophy of John Stuart Mill J SkorupskiJohn Stuart Mill D Thompson John Stuart Mill and Representative Government W Donner The Liberal Self: John Stuart Mill’s Moral and Political Philosophy D Lyons (ed) Mill’s Utilitarianism: Critical Essays J Skorupski (ed) The Cambridge Companion to Mill J.Skorupski, Why read Mill today? M Laine (ed) A Cultivated Mind: Essays on J. S. Mill presented to John M. Robson N.Urbinati (ed), J.S.Mill’s Thought