Summary
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the great nineteenth century political philosopher John Stuart Mill. He believed that, 'The true philosophy is the marriage of poetry and logic'. He was one of the first thinkers to argue that a social theory must engage with ideas of culture and the internal life. He used Wordsworth to inform his social theory, he was a proto feminist and his treatise On Liberty is one of the sacred texts of liberalism. J S Mill believed that action was the natural articulation of thought. He battled throughout his life for social reform and individual freedom and was hugely influential in the extension of the vote. Few modern discussions on race, birth control, the state and human rights have not been influenced by Mill's theories. How did Mill's utilitarian background shape his political ideas? Why did he think Romantic literature was significant to the rational structure of society? On what grounds did he argue for women's equality? And how did his notions of the individual become central to modern social theory? With A C Grayling, Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London; Janet Radcliffe Richards, Reader in Bioethics at University College London; Alan Ryan, Professor of Politics at Oxford University.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Just before this BBC podcast gets underway, here's something you may not know. |
| 0:04.7 | My name's Linda Davies and I Commission Podcasts for BBC Sounds. |
| 0:08.5 | As you'd expect, at the BBC we make podcasts of the very highest quality featuring the most knowledgeable experts and genuinely engaging voices. |
| 0:18.0 | What you may not know is that the BBC makes podcasts about all kinds of things like pop stars, |
| 0:24.6 | poltergeist, cricket, and conspiracy theories and that's just a few examples. |
| 0:29.7 | If you'd like to discover something a little bit unexpected, find your next podcast over at BBC Sounds. |
| 0:36.0 | Thanks for downloading the In Our Time Podcast. |
| 0:39.0 | For more details about In Our Time and for our terms of use, please go to BBC.co. UK forward slash radio for. I hope you enjoy |
| 0:46.5 | the program. Hello the 19th century philosopher John Stuart Mill believed that |
| 0:50.9 | quote the true philosophy is a marriage of poetry and logic |
| 0:54.0 | unquote he was one of the first thinkers to argue that a social theory must engage |
| 0:58.4 | with the ideas of culture and the internal life he used Wordsworth to inform his social theory. He was a proto-feminist |
| 1:05.9 | and his treaties on liberty is one of the sacred texts of liberalism. |
| 1:09.9 | J.S. Mill believed that action was the natural articulation of thought. |
| 1:14.0 | He battled throughout his life for social reform and individual freedom and was hugely |
| 1:18.2 | influential in the extension of the vote. Few modern discussions on race, birth control, the state and human rights have not been influenced by Mills theories. |
| 1:27.0 | How did Mills' utilitarian background shape his political ideas? |
| 1:31.0 | Why did he think romantic literature was significant to the rational |
| 1:35.0 | structure of society? On what grounds did he argue for women's equality and how did his |
| 1:39.9 | notions of the individual become so central to modern social theory. |
| 1:44.6 | With me to discuss J.S. Mel, our A.C. Grelling, Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck University of London. |
| 1:50.3 | Janet Rachte Pritchez, Reader in Bioethics at University London, and Alan Ryan, Professor of Politics at Oxford University. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.