Description
Book SynopsisJeremy Bentham's (1748-1832) writings in social and political thought were both theoretical and practical. As a theorist, he made important contributions to the modern understanding of the principle of utility, to ideas of sovereignty, liberty and justice and to the importance of radical reform in a representative democracy. As a reformer, his ideas regarding constitutionalism, revolution, individual liberty and the extent of government have not only played an important role in eighteenth and nineteenth century debates but also, together with his theoretical work, remain relevant to similar debates today. This volume includes essays from leading Bentham scholars plus an introduction, surveying recent scholarship, by Frederick Rosen, formerly Director of the Bentham Project and Professor Emeritus of the History of Political Thought, University College London.
Table of ContentsContents: Series preface; Introduction; Part I The Utilitarian Tradition: 'Utility' and the 'utility principle': Hume, Smith, Bentham, Mill, Douglas G. Long; Reading Hume backwards: utility as the foundation of morals, Frederick Rosen; The clew to the labyrinth, Ross Harrison. Part II Liberty and Justice: Fundamental words, Douglas G. Long; Utilitarian justice and the tasks of law, Gerald J. Postema; Security, expectation and liberty, P.J. Kelly; Liberty and constitutional theory, Frederick Rosen. Part III Sovereignty and the State: Bentham on sovereignty, H.L.A. Hart; Bentham on sovereignty; an exploration, J.H. Burns; Sovereignty and democracy, Frederick Rosen. Part IV Polity and Economy: Utilitarianism and distributive justice: the civil law and the foundations of Bentham's economic thought, P.J. Kelly; Economy and polity in Bentham's science of legislation, David Lieberman; Jeremy Bentham, Takuo Dome. Part V Society: Foucault and Bentham: a defence of panopticism, Janet Semple; Rethinking institutions in late Georgian England, Roy Porter; Jeremy Bentham on the relief of indigence: an exercise in applied philosophy, Michael Quinn; Utilitarianism and feminism, Lea Campos Boralevi; 'Not Paul but Jesus', Louis Crompton. Part VI The French Revolution and Political Radicalism: Bentham and the French revolution, J.H. Burns; Bentham's transition to political radicalism, 1809-10, J.R. Dinwiddy; Bentham's political radicalism re-examined, J. Crimmins; Jeremy Bentham, the French Revolution and political radicalism, Philip Schofield. Part VII Revolution in Government: The transmission of Benthamite ideas 1820-1850, S.E. Finer; Jeremy Bentham and the 19th-century revolution in government, L.J. Hume; Jeremy Bentham and the 19th-century revolution in government, Stephen Conway; Name index.
