Before you read on: how did John Stuart Mill view a future in which a rich economy stopped growing?
Earlier economists dreaded an end to growth. Mill thought this stationary state could be a considerable improvement, if wealth was better shared.
- Lived
- Born 20 May 1806 in London; died in May 1873 in Avignon, France
- Nationality
- English
- Work
- Worked for the East India Company from his teens until 1858, ending as head of its examiner's office; Liberal MP for Westminster from 1865 to 1868
- Key works
- A System of Logic (1843); Principles of Political Economy (1848); On Liberty (1859); Utilitarianism (1861); The Subjection of Women (1869)
- School
- Classical economics, which reached maturity in the work of Ricardo and Mill; in philosophy, a utilitarian
What Mill was reacting to
Mill was the eldest son of the economist James Mill, a follower of the philosopher Jeremy Bentham. He grew up in Bentham's utilitarianism, the idea that actions should be judged by the happiness they produce.
As a young man Mill suffered a breakdown and moved away from his father's strict Benthamite views. He set out to restate the classical economics of Smith and Ricardo and, as the full title of his Principles says, to apply it to social philosophy.
Mill's key ideas
Can you name Mill's four key ideas?
Mill argued that the laws of producing wealth are fixed, like physical truths. How wealth is shared out depends on the laws and customs a society chooses, so it can be reformed.
Can you think of an example?
The size of a harvest depends on soil, weather and skill. Who receives it depends on rules about property, rent and inheritance, which Parliament can change.
Mill backed free trade with one exception. A young nation may use a temporary tariff to establish a suitable industry, since a rival's lead often comes only from starting sooner.
Can you think of an example?
A young country could make steel well, but its new mills face rivals with decades of skill. A tariff for a set period gives its workers time to learn, and then ends.
A rich economy in which capital and population stop growing. Older economists dreaded it. Mill thought it could be a considerable improvement, since advanced countries needed better distribution more than extra output.
Can you think of an example?
In Mill's picture, fewer huge fortunes are passed on, workers are well paid, and there is as much room as ever to improve the art of living.
In On Liberty (1859), Mill argued that society may force someone to act against their will only to prevent harm to others. Their own good is not enough. He grounded this in utility, not abstract rights.
Can you think of an example?
On Mill's principle, the state may stop someone setting fire to a neighbour's barn. It may not stop an adult spending their savings unwisely, though friends may argue with them.