John Stuart Mill

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Standard Name: Mill, John Stuart
Used Form: J. S. Mill
JSM was a leader in the intellectual life of the nineteenth century and of liberal or progressive thought. He wrote numerous philosophical works, publishing essays, newspaper articles, reviews, letters, and pamphlets over approximately sixty years. Best-known to feminists is Of the Subjection of Women, 1869. Harriet Taylor , whom he married after her husband's death, was a major influence on him.
Black and white, head-and-shoulders photograph of John Stuart Mill by the London Stereoscopic Company, c. 1870, looking directly at the viewer as if challengingly.

Connections

Connections Author name Excerpt
politics Margaret Haig Viscountess Rhondda
That autumn, against the wishes of both her father and her husband, she joined the WSPU , organising a local branch at Newport, South Wales. She paid her one-shilling annual membership fee and pledged...
Intertextuality and Influence Margaret Haig Viscountess Rhondda
Margaret Haig Thomas (later MHVR ) was influenced by the political ideas of John Stuart Mill 's The Subjection of Women (1869), Cicely Hamilton 's Marriage as a Trade (1909), and Olive Schreiner 's Woman and Labour (1911).
Eoff, Shirley. Viscountess Rhondda: Equalitarian Feminist. Ohio State University Press, 1991.
22-8, 30-1
Textual Features Margaret Haig Viscountess Rhondda
Extending Mill 's idea that the unemancipated woman was a danger to the community,
Rhondda, Margaret Haig, Viscountess. Leisured Women. Hogarth Press, 1928.
5
MHVR argues that the pseudo-equality
Rhondda, Margaret Haig, Viscountess. Leisured Women. Hogarth Press, 1928.
6
of limited enfranchisement is more dangerous than absolute oppression, and that the half-way house...
Education Margaret Haig Viscountess Rhondda
Taught by governesses until she was thirteen, Margaret Haig Thomas learned to read at about five. She was taught German and French, and she also learned Welsh as a child but did not retain it...
Friends, Associates Sarah Flower Adams
As her father established himself socially and politically within the Dalston community, she became involved in London's literary and intellectual circles. Among those she met, William James Linton , John Stuart Mill , and...
Occupation Sarah Austin
She invested enormous energy in efforts to offset her husband's disability.
Pickett, T. H. “Four Letters of John Stuart Mill to Sarah Austin”. Victorians Institute Journal, Vol.
15
, 1987, pp. 135-41.
137
She was a scrupulous translator, frequently add[ing] notes and explanatory material to her translations.
Shattock, Joanne. The Oxford Guide to British Women Writers. Oxford University Press, 1993.
John Stuart Mill reflects in his autobiography that SA
Occupation Sarah Austin
SA taught German to Charles Buller , and to both James Mill and his son John Stuart Mill .
Ross, Janet. Three Generations of Englishwomen. John Murray, 1888, 2 vols.
38
Pickett, T. H. “Four Letters of John Stuart Mill to Sarah Austin”. Victorians Institute Journal, Vol.
15
, 1987, pp. 135-41.
135
Friends, Associates Sarah Austin
The couple were also good friends with Thomas and Jane Carlyle . SA helped the Carlyles with their house-hunting in London,
Tarr, Rodger L. “’Let us burn our ships’: Carlyle, Sarah Austin, and House-Hunting in London”. Studies in Scottish Literature, edited by G. Ross Roy, University of South Carolina Press, 1987, pp. 91-94.
91
and introduced Thomas Carlyle to John Stuart Mill . Other friends included...
Friends, Associates Sarah Austin
John Stuart Mill became like an adopted son to the Austins.
Hamburger, Lotte, and Joseph Hamburger. Troubled Lives: John and Sarah Austin. University of Toronto Press, 1985.
30
Stephen, Sir Leslie, and Sidney Lee, editors. The Dictionary of National Biography. Smith, Elder, 1908–2025, 22 vols. plus supplements.
A great affection developed between him and Sarah, whom he addressed by the title of Mutter. However, his feelings cooled during the...
Textual Production Lydia Becker
LB published the pamphlet Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, a Reply to Mr Fitzjames Stephen 's Strictures on Mr. J. S. Mill 's Subjection of Women.
Stephen, Sir Leslie, and Sidney Lee, editors. The Dictionary of National Biography. Smith, Elder, 1908–2025, 22 vols. plus supplements.
politics Matilda Betham-Edwards
Though MBE attended, together with a male friend, a meeting of the International Working Men's Association presided over by Karl Marx , she did so more as an observer than as a sympathiser. She felt...
politics Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon
Barbara Leigh Smith (later BLSB ) read John Stuart Mill 's Principles of Political Economy.
Herstein, Sheila R. A Mid-Victorian Feminist: Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon. Yale University Press, 1985.
18
politics Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon
BLSB and the Langham Place feminists strongly supported John Stuart Mill 's campaign for office.
Herstein, Sheila R. A Mid-Victorian Feminist: Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon. Yale University Press, 1985.
150
politics Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon
The petition was presented to Parliament by John Stuart Mill on 7 June 1866.
Textual Production Robert Browning
Although reviews of Pauline were mixed, not a single copy was sold when he first released it. RB received some pretty fierce criticism from John Stuart Mill in an annotated review copy that he had...

Timeline

January 1835: A prospectus announced the imminent merging...

Writing climate item

January 1835

A prospectus announced the imminent merging of the Westminster Review with the newly created London Review.
Houghton, Walter E., and Jean Harris Slingerland, editors. The Wellesley Index to Victorian Periodicals 1824-1900. University of Toronto Press, 1966–1989, 5 vols.
3: 535-6

31 March 1836: The Westminster Review merged with a new...

Writing climate item

31 March 1836

The Westminster Review merged with a new quarterly to produce The London and Westminster Review, which embraced the philosophies of political and cultural radicals.
Houghton, Walter E., and Jean Harris Slingerland, editors. The Wellesley Index to Victorian Periodicals 1824-1900. University of Toronto Press, 1966–1989, 5 vols.
3: 537-8

26 May 1840: The Westminster Review, a new or restored...

Writing climate item

26 May 1840

The Westminster Review, a new or restored incarnation of the London and Westminster Review, first appeared, following on the resignation of John Stuart Mill .
Houghton, Walter E., and Jean Harris Slingerland, editors. The Wellesley Index to Victorian Periodicals 1824-1900. University of Toronto Press, 1966–1989, 5 vols.
3: 540-1

October 1864: The Working Women's College opened in Queen...

Building item

October 1864

The Working Women's College opened in Queen Street, London.
Purvis, June. A History of Women’s Education in England. Open University Press, 1991.
45-6
Haydn, Joseph. Haydn’s Dictionary of Dates and Universal Information. Editor Vincent, Benjamin, 23rd ed., Ward, Lock, 1904.
1395
Hudson, Derek, and Arthur Joseph Munby. Munby, Man of Two Worlds. J. Murray, 1972.
177-8
Cullwick, Hannah. “Introduction and Notes”. The Diaries of Hannah Cullwick, Victorian Maidservant, edited by Liz Stanley, Rutgers University Press, 1984, pp. 1 - 28, passim.
264

7 October 1865: Governor Edward Eyre ruthlessly suppressed...

National or international item

7 October 1865

Governor Edward Eyre ruthlessly suppressed a rebellion which began at Morant Bay in Jamaica.
Rose, Phyllis. Parallel Lives: Five Victorian Marriages. Alfred A. Knopf, 1984.
264-5

7 June 1866: John Stuart Mill presented to the House of...

National or international item

7 June 1866

John Stuart Mill presented to the House of Commons a suffrage petition signed by 1,499 women, drafted by Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon , Jessie Boucherett , and Emily Davies .
Rover, Constance. Women’s Suffrage and Party Politics in Britain, 1866-1914. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1967.
2, 5, 218
Soldon, Norbert. Women in British Trade Unions 1874-1976. Gill and Macmillan, 1978.
7

7 June 1866: John Stuart Mill presented to the House of...

National or international item

7 June 1866

John Stuart Mill presented to the House of Commons a suffrage petition signed by 1,499 women, drafted by Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon , Jessie Boucherett , and Emily Davies .
Rover, Constance. Women’s Suffrage and Party Politics in Britain, 1866-1914. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1967.
2, 5, 218
Soldon, Norbert. Women in British Trade Unions 1874-1976. Gill and Macmillan, 1978.
7

5 April 1867: John Stuart Mill presented the House of Commons...

National or international item

5 April 1867

John Stuart Mill presented the House of Commons with a second women's suffrage petitionpetition, bearing over three thousand signatures.
Herstein, Sheila R. A Mid-Victorian Feminist: Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon. Yale University Press, 1985.
163

20 May 1867: John Stuart Mill moved to amend the Representation...

National or international item

20 May 1867

John Stuart Mill moved to amend the Representation of the People Bill to replace the word man with person.
Herstein, Sheila R. A Mid-Victorian Feminist: Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon. Yale University Press, 1985.
163
Rover, Constance. Women’s Suffrage and Party Politics in Britain, 1866-1914. Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1967.
218

Autumn 1867: The London National Society for Women's Suffrage...

Building item

Autumn 1867

The London National Society for Women's Suffrage was formed under the direction of Frances Power Cobbe , Millicent Garrett Fawcett , and others.
Fawcett, Millicent Garrett. What I Remember. Hyperion Press, 1976.
221
Blackburn, Helen. Women’s Suffrage. Facsimile Edition, Source Book Press, 1970.
63-4
Kent, Susan Kingsley. Sex and Suffrage in Britain, 1860-1914. Princeton University Press, 1987.
186
Smith, Janet. “Helen Taylor’s Anti-imperial Feminism: Ireland and the Land League question”. Women’s History, Vol.
2
, No. 4, 1 Mar.–31 May 2016, pp. 19-24.
20

1868: Mary Abigail Dodge published Woman's Wrongs:...

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1868

Mary Abigail Dodge published Woman's Wrongs: A Counter-Irritant in Boston under the name of Mary Hamilton.
Hedrick, Joan. Harriet Beecher Stowe: A Life. Oxford University Press, 1994.
359
Library of Congress Online Catalog. http://catalog.loc.gov/.

21 April 1868: A Married Women's Property Bill prepared...

National or international item

21 April 1868

A Married Women's Property Bill prepared by the National Association for the Promotion of Social Science was sponsored by George Shaw Lefevre and John Stuart Mill ; it stalled because the vote in the House

February 1876: Anna Haslam, a Quaker, established the Dublin...

National or international item

February 1876

Anna Haslam , a Quaker, established the Dublin Women's Suffrage Association (sometimes known as the Irish Suffrage Society ).
Owens, Rosemary Cullen. Smashing Times: A History of the Irish Women’s Suffrage Movement 1889-1922. Attic, 1984.
23-5
MacCurtain, Margaret. “Women, the Vote and Revolution”. Women in Irish Society: The Historical Dimension, edited by Margaret MacCurtain and Donncha Ó Corráin, Greenwood, 1979, pp. 46-57.
46-7
Luddy, Maria, editor. Women in Ireland, 1800-1918: A Documentary History. Cork University Press, 1995.
271

1900: Sir Leslie Stephen published The English...

Writing climate item

1900

Sir Leslie Stephen published The English Utilitarians, a three-volume study of Jeremy Bentham , James Mill , and John Stuart Mill .
Solo: Search Oxford University Libraries Online. 18 July 2011, http://solo.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/primo_library/libweb/action/search.do?vid=OXVU1&fromLogin=true&reset_config=true.

15, 17 June 2011: The Visual Arts Data Service (VADS) released...

Building item

15, 17 June 2011

The Visual Arts Data Service (VADS) released a digitized version of documents, photos, banners, and personal mementoes from the struggle of British women for suffrage, housed at the Women's Library and the British parliamentary archives.
Doherty, Teresa. Emails to the Women’s History Network. 15 June 2011.

Texts

Mill, John Stuart. A System of Logic, Ratiocinative and Inductive. J. W. Parker, 1843, 2 vols.
Mill, John Stuart. Autobiography. Editor Taylor, Helen, Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer, 1873.
Mill, John Stuart, and John Jacob Coss. Autobiography. Columbia University Press, 1924.
Mill, John Stuart. Collected Works of John Stuart Mill. University of Toronto Press, 1991, 33 vols.
Mill, John Stuart. Dissertations and Discussions. J. W. Parker, 1859, 2 vols.
Mill, John Stuart, and Harriet Taylor. Essays on Sex Equality. Editor Rossi, Alice S., University of Chicago Press, 1970.
Collini, Stefan, and John Stuart Mill. “Introduction”. Essays on Equality, Law, and Education, edited by John M. Robson and John M. Robson, University of Toronto Press, 1984, p. vii - lvi.
Robson, Ann P. et al. “Introduction and Editorial Materials”. Sexual Equality, University of Toronto Press, 1994, p. vii - xxxv; various pages.
Hayek, Friedrich Augustus von et al. John Stuart Mill and Harriet Taylor; Their Correspondence [i.e. Friendship] and Subsequent Marriage. University of Chicago Press, 1951.
Mill, John Stuart. Nature, the Utility of Religion, and Theism. Editor Taylor, Helen, Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer, 1874.
Mill, John Stuart. On Liberty. J. W. Parker, 1859.
Mill, John Stuart, and Dorothy Fosdick. On Social Freedom. Columbia University Press, 1941.
Mill, John Stuart. Principles of Political Economy. J. W. Parker, 1848, 2 vols.
Mill, John Stuart, and Harriet Taylor. Remarks on Mr. Fitzroy’s Bill for the More Effectual Prevention of Assaults on Women and Children. Printed for private circulation, 1853.
Mill, John Stuart, and Harriet Taylor. “Sentiment and Intellect: The Story of John Stuart Mill and Harriet Taylor Mill”. Essays on Sex Equality, edited by Alice S. Rossi, University of Chicago Press, 1970, pp. 1-63.
Mill, John Stuart et al. Sexual Equality. Editors Robson, Ann P. and John M. Robson, University of Toronto Press, 1994.
Collini, Stefan et al. “Textual Introduction”. Essays on Equality, Law, and Education, edited by John M. Robson, University of Toronto Press, 1984, p. lvii - lxxxiii.
Mill, John Stuart. The Earlier Letters of John Stuart Mill: 1812-1848. Editor Mineka, Francis Edward, University of Toronto Press, 1963.
Mill, John Stuart. The Early Draft of John Stuart Mill’s Autobiography. Editor Stillinger, Jack, University of Illinois Press, 1961.
Mill, John Stuart. The Subjection of Women. Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer, 1869.
Mill, John Stuart. Utilitarianism. Parker, Son and Bourn, 1863.
Mill, John Stuart, and Harriet Taylor. “Wife Murder”. Morning Chronicle.