John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) was one of the most influential philosophers of the nineteenth century. His work is foundational for liberalism and utilitarianism, and he served as a member of parliament (MP). His writings greatly impacted the fields of social theory, economic philosophy, and political theory. Mill was not just a theoretical philosopher, but also a socially conscious one, strongly supporting the abolition of slavery and advocating for women’s suffrage.
Mill was born on May 20, 1806, in Pentonville, London. His father, James Mill, educated him at home. Mill’s exceptional and rigorous education, which he later described in his autobiography, was designed to prepare him to be a political leader. Mill was a child prodigy. He began learning Greek at age three and Latin at age eight, and finished reading most of the canonical works, along with important Scottish and English historical texts, by age twelve. In his teenage years, he was taught calculus, physics, and astronomy. At fifteen, he began producing his own philosophical work.
At the age of seventeen, Mill started working at the East India Company and eventually became its chief examiner of correspondence. At twenty, he experienced a major emotional setback when he began to doubt his belief in utilitarian philosophy, and even consider suicide. He questioned the value of his philosophical and political pursuits. As he writes in his autobiography, “Suppose that all your objects in life were realized; that all the changes in institutions and opinions which you are looking forward to, could be completely effected at this very instant: would this be a great joy and happiness to you? And an irrepressible self-consciousness distinctly answered, ‘No!’” During his mental crisis, Mill lost the motivation to strive for his goals. It took him two years to recover from the episode. The poetry of Wordsworth, which he described as “medicine for my state of mind,” played a significant role in his recovery. Wordsmith’s poetry showed Mill a reliable source of happiness, one that could be sustained even after all his goals were achieved: he realized the value of being moved by the beauty of contemplation, not just its outcomes. This experience changed Mill’s philosophical views, and he started to stress the importance of emotion and feeling in addition to progressive political change.
Mill’s most notable works include “On Liberty,” Utilitarianism, and A System of Logic. “On Liberty, ”published in 1859, extends the application of utilitarianism to society and government. In the essay, Mill discusses the question of how much control a society should have over its citizens. Mill believed that the power of the social mass could be as dangerous as a tyrant, posing a new kind of risk to individual freedom. He was concerned not only with legal restrictions on freedom but also with the influence of social pressure and public opinion. This includes both legal penalties and the more subtle ways a society might control individuals, such as through social expectations and judgment. Mill was worried that this kind of social pressure could lead to citizens thinking and acting homogenously. He argues that it is better for both individuals and society if people have the freedom to develop their own personalities and ideas. He develops the famous “harm principle,” which entails that, in a civilized society, the only good reason to limit someone’s freedom is to stop them from harming others.
In addition to being a philosopher, Mill was also a prominent politician. In his autobiography, Mill said that he was not only concerned with theoretical matters, but also practical ones. In 1865, Mill was elected as a member of parliament for Westminster, representing the Liberal party. As an MP, he actively fought for women’s rights. He revealed that he didn’t want to be in Parliament if it didn't help bring about women’s suffrage. In 1869, after his proposal for women’s suffrage was turned down by Parliament, Mill published “The Subjection of Women.” In this essay, he argues for basic rights and equality for women. Mill had held a belief in gender equality since he was young, and he expressed it explicitly many of his writings on ethics and politics.
Mill’s ideas on gender equality were also influenced by women in his life. The most significant influence was Harriet Taylor, whom Mill married in 1851, after being close friends with her for 21 years. A serious philosopher in her own right, Taylor greatly impacted Mill’s thoughts on gender politics, and Mill acknowledged her as a co-author of many of his works. Taylor passed away in 1858 while in France, and was buried in Avignon, where Mill bought a house near her grave and where he spent the rest of his life.
Published in 1859, On Liberty was perhaps John Stuart Mill's finest and most controversial work. Released shortly after his beloved wife, Harriet's death, On Liberty is Mill at his finest arguing for the principles he had espoused over his fifty...
“The Subjection of Women,” one of Mill’s most renowned essays, was published in 1869, and stands as one of the 19th century’s strongest calls for gender equality. In this essay, Mill argues that the inferior political status of women in comparison...
First published in 1861, Utilitarianism constituted Mill's fullest treatment of the moral theory that was responsible for much of his philosophy. Following in the footsteps of Jeremy Bentham, in this work Mill provides the capstone paper outlining...
