A Companion to Mill

This Companion offers a state-of-the-art survey of the work of John Stuart Mill — one which covers the historical influences on Mill, his theoretical, moral and social philosophy, as well as his relation to contemporary movements. Its contributors include both senior scholars with established expertise in Mill's thought and new emerging interpreters. Each essay acts as a "go-to" resource for those seeking to understand an aspect of Mill's thought or to familiarise themselves with the contours of a debate within the scholarship.

The Companion is a key reference on Mill's theory of liberty and utilitarianism, but also provides a valuable resource on lesser-known aspects of his work, including his epistemology, metaphysics, and philosophy of language. The volume is divided into six sections. Part I covers Mill's life, his immediate posthumous reputation, and his own telling of his life-story. Part II brings together an accessible and comprehensive summary of the various influences on Mill's thought. Part III offers an account of the foundations of Mill’s philosophy and his thought on key philosophic topics. Parts IV and V tackle issues from Mill's moral and social philosophy. Part VI concludes with a treatment of the broader aspects of Mill’s thought, tracing his relation to major movements in philosophy.

Christopher Macleod is Lecturer in Political Philosophy at the University of Lancaster. His current research focuses on Mill's theoretical philosophy and his theory of normativity. He is the author of "Mill's Antirealism" (Philosophical Quarterly, 2016), "Mill, Intuitions, and Normativity" (Utilitas, 2013) and the entry on J.S. Mill for the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2016).

Dale E. Miller is Professor of Philosophy at Old Dominion University in the US. He is the author of J. S. Mill: Moral, Social and Political Thought (Polity, 2010), and the co-editor of several collections: The Cambridge Companion to Utilitarianism ( with Ben Eggleston, 2014); John Stuart Mill and the Art of Life (with Ben Eggleston and David Weinstein, 2011); and Morality, Rules and Consequences (with Brad Hooker and Elinor Mason, 2000).

Notes on Contributors x

Preface xvi

Note on Citations xix

Part I Mill’s Autobiography and Biography 1

1 Mill’s Mind: A Biographical Sketch 3
Richard V. Reeves

2 Mill’s Epiphanies 12
Elijah Millgram

3 The Afterlife of John Stuart Mill, 1874–1879 30
David Stack

4 Mill’s Autobiography as Literature 45
Samuel Clark

Part II Influences on Mill’s Thought 59

5 Mill and the Classics 61
Robert Devigne

6 Roots of Mill’s Radicalism 79
Peter Niesen

7 British Critics of Utilitarianism 95
Bruce Kinzer

8 Harriet Taylor Mill 112
Helen McCabe

9 The French Influence 126
Vincent Guillin

Part III Foundations of Mill’s Thought 143

10 Psychology, Associationism, and Ethology 145
Terence Ball

11 Mill on Race and Gender 160
C.L. Ten

12 Mill on Logic 175
David Godden

13 Mill’s Epistemology 192
Richard Fumerton

14 Mill’s Philosophy of Language 207
Frederick Kroon

15 Mill on Metaphysics 222
Nicholas Capaldi

16 Mill’s Philosophy of Science 234
Aaron D. Cobb

17 Mill’s Aesthetics 250
Antis Loizides

18 Mill on History 266
Christopher Macleod

19 Mill’s Philosophy of Religion 279
Lou J. Matz

Part IV Mill’s Moral Philosophy 295

20 Mill’s Art of Life 297
Guy Fletcher

21 Mill’s Conception of Happiness 313
Ben Saunders

22 The Proof 328
Henry R. West

23 Mill on Utilitarian Sanctions 342
Jonathan Riley

24 Mill’s Moral Standard 358
Ben Eggleston

25 Mill on Justice and Rights 374
David O. Brink

26 Mill and Virtue 390
Brian McElwee

Part V Mill’s Social Philosophy 407

27 The Harm Principle 409
D.G. Brown

28 Mill on Individuality 425
Wendy Donner

29 Mill on Freedom of Speech 440
Daniel Jacobson

30 Mill on Democracy Revisited 454
Georgios Varouxakis

31 Mill on the Family 472
Dale E. Miller

32 Mill’s Normative Economics 488
Gerald Gaus

33 Mill on Education and Schooling 504
Graham Finlay

34 Mill on Colonialism 518
Don A. Habibi

Part VI Mill and Later Movements in Philosophy 533

35 Mill, German Idealism, and the Analytic/Continental Divide 535
John Skorupski

36 Mill and Modern Utilitarianism 551
William H. Shaw

37 Mill and Modern Liberalism 567
Piers Norris Turner

Index 583

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