John Stuart Mill A Philosopher For Today
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
If you’re staying in one of the many fine Kensington hotels, you’ll be spending time in the same area as the birth and workplace John Stuart Mill (1806-73).
A philosopher and son of a Scottish philosopher, he is a voice from the 19th century that resonates today even if he is less of a household name than say Marx or Nietzsche.
Who was J.S. Mill?
John Stuart Mill was a philosopher and, https://mnwiki.org/index.php/Ben_Stokes_Has_Been_Installed_As_The_Odds-on_Favourite_To_Become_The_New_England_Test_Captain_After_Joe_Root_s_Resignation_Today_As_The_England_And_Wales_Cricket_Board_Face_A_Dearth_Of_Candidates_For_The_Role specifically, one that adhered to a version of what’s called ‘Utilitarianism’. That school of philosophy is often, unfairly, defined by the overly simplistic view that it defines what course of action is ‘right’ based upon the principle of “what is in the greatest good for the greatest number of people”.
He’d picked many of his views up from Jeremy Bentham, but before you think this is going to be a great discussion of philosophical principles, that isn’t the purpose of this article.
What makes Mill different?
One of the most important differences for many modern readers today is that Mill is still ‘readable’. Yes, his language has that mid-Victorian floweriness that can take a bit of getting used to but his works are very human, brilliantly written and a relatively easy read.
That can’t be said for many of his contemporaries.
The second thing is that he was what can only be described as ‘socially enlightened’. He probably wouldn’t be regarded as a radical social reformer by 21st century standards, but he certainly was by those of the 19th. In that respect, his stand on women’s rights is perhaps today what he’s best known for.
One of his major works, “The Subjection of Women” is considered a major milestone in the campaign towards women’s equality – a treatise that he wrote with considerable help and input from his wife.
Another major difference with Mill was that he was also applied. Not content with sitting back in the relative comfort of his Kensington Square home (a short walk from many Kensington hotels) and merely ‘philosophising’, he was an active member in many reform movements, including (indirectly) the “Kensington Society”, formed by women and which was an early precursor to what would eventually become the suffrage and suffragette movements.
His relevance today
Mill was, in many respects, a creation of his time. Not all his views strike a chord with modern readers, but many do, and that’s incredible for the period within which he was writing and given his background. The message today from him is that it is possible to break free of the social conditioning that everyone is brought up under, to one extent or another, to accept the existing social order and inevitability of things being ‘the way they are’ even when that entails manifest and illogical injustice.
If you’re staying in one of the delightful Kensington hotels, you’re very well placed to stroll to his former home and find out more about this great and influential human thinker.
