Traditionally, John Stuart Mill has been described as a transitional thinker who fails to fully understand the values he espouses. Critics contend that he cannot simultaneously espouse both utility maximization and the protection of individual choice-making as a non-trumpable value. Like his moral philosophy, Mill’s political thought is also rejected for interspersing, seemingly at random, elements of utilitarianism with concerns about respecting individual choice-making. More recent attempts to bring Mill’s commitment to utilitarianism into line with his respect for individual choice-making are not wholly successful. In this thesis, I offer an interpretation of Mill’s moral philosophy which reconciles the tension between utility maximization and respect for individual choice-making as a non-trumpable value. In addition, I argue that my interpretation of Mill’s moral philosophy also allows us to interpret his political thought. / Master of Arts
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/36581 |
Date | 15 April 1997 |
Creators | Miller, J. Joseph |
Contributors | Philosophy, Croskery, Patrick T., White, Stephen K., Christman, John P. |
Publisher | Virginia Tech |
Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
Detected Language | English |
Type | Thesis |
Format | application/pdf |
Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
Relation | etd.pdf |
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