'The principle of private property has never had a fair trial in any country.' -J.S. Mill
This volume unites, for the first time, Books IV and V of Mill's great treatise on political economy with his fragmentary Chapters on Socialism. It shows him applying his classical economic theory to policy questions of lasting concern: the desirability of sustained growth of national wealth and population, the merits of capitalism versus socialism, and the suitable scope of government intervention in the competitive market economy. His answers to those questions have profound relevance today, and they serve to illustrate the enduring power and imagination of his distinctive liberal utilitarian philosophy. The lucid introduction and explanatory notes clarify Mill's philosophy in relation to his economic theory, and make full use of the most recent scholarship.
Edited with an Introduction and Notes by Jonathan Riley
About the Author
John Stuart Mill was born in a suburb of London on May 20, 1806. By the age of ten he was reading classical authors in the original Greek and Latin, was proficient in history, algebra, and geometry, and soon after began to study logic, political economy, and law. He was elected to Parliament in 1865 and held the Radical seat for Westminster for the next three years. Mill died in Avignon, France, on May 7, 1873.
Jonathan Riley is Associate Professor, Murphy Institute, Tulane University. He is also the author of Liberal Utilitarianism: Social Choice Theory and J. S. Mill's Philosophy (OUP, 1988).
