Philosophical Radicals

About this Collection

The Philosophical Radicals were a group of British reformers in the early and mid-19th century who were inspired by the ideas of Jeremy Bentham. Their group included James Mill, Francis Place, George Grote, John Stuart Mill, and William Molesworth. Some of them entered Parliament to lobby for legislative reforms. Their main journal was the *Westminster Review".

Western Europe Periods of Enlightenment Philosophy, Psychology, and Religion

Key People

Jeremy Bentham

Jeremy Bentham

William Godwin

William Godwin

George Grote

George Grote

James Mill

James Mill

John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill

Titles & Essays

Group by Category

THE READING ROOM

Bayle’s Dictionary: #1 Bestseller in the 18th Century

By: Walter Donway

“In matters of religion, it is very easy to deceive a man and very hard to undeceive him.” --Pierre Bayle
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THE READING ROOM

Benjamin Tucker Today - War, Antisemitism, Lawyers

By: Michael Zigismund

Benjamin Tucker’s Liberty in 1882 had a few things to say about our day’s concerns, such as war, antisemitism, and lawyers.
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THE READING ROOM

Candide: Published in Exile, Denounced, Banned, and a Classic

By: Walter Donway

In 1759, when Voltaire published Candide, at first anonymously, he was sixty-five years of age. He had been imprisoned in the Bastille, exiled to England in lieu of further incarceration, banished from Paris by King Louis XV (in…
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THE READING ROOM

David Hume: Skepticism, Pessimism, Enlightenment

By: Walter Donway

“The identity that we ascribe to things is only a fictitious one, established by the mind, not a peculiar nature belonging to what we’re talking about.”—David Hume
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THE READING ROOM

David Hume’s Great Work on Religion Is Banned, Along with All His Books

By: Walter Donway

The Christian religion not only was at first attended with miracles, but even at this day cannot be believed by any reasonable person without one.—David HumeThe life of man is of no greater importance to the universe than that of an…
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THE READING ROOM

Isaac Newton’s Principia and Life after It

By: Walter Donway

Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica was Newton’s historic achievement. It altered the course of science from that day to this. In summer 1684, Newton began this work, partially stimulated by a visit from the British…
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James Mill

James Mill (contributor)

This is a collection of key extracts by, and essays and study guides about James Mill

See also the following works:

Exploring Ideas:James Mill on Writing his Critical History of India Reading List: Mill-Macaulay Debate on…

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John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill (contributor)

This is a collection of key extracts by, and essays and study guides about John Stuart Mill (1806-1873).

See also the following works:

Works in the OLL by John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) Timelines:The Life of John Stuart Mill…

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THE READING ROOM

OLL’s November Birthday: Baruch Spinoza (November 24, 1632 – February 21, 1677)

By: Peter Carl Mentzel

This month’s featured birthday anniversary is the Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza, a.k.a, Benedict de Spinoza. A key figure in the history of Rationalism, he is also widely regarded as one of the most important expounders of the…
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THE READING ROOM

Reflecting on Banned Books: Hume’s Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding

By: Aeon J. Skoble

Britain, 1761. All of David Hume’s works are banned by the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, including his 1748 Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. What was so horrible about the work of this Scottish philosopher that would make the…
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THE READING ROOM

Rousseau’s Discourse on the Arts and Sciences

By: Philip D. Bunn

Rousseau’s life was marked and marred by controversy and persecution. Though his lifestyle was somewhat sordid, as recounted in his Confessions, it was his ideas that were treated as most dangerous by his contemporary intellectual…
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THE READING ROOM

The Eighteenth Century’s Boundless Optimism Collides with David Hume

By: Walter Donway

“Epicurus’s old questions are still unanswered: Is he [God] willing to prevent evil, but not able? then he is impotent. Is he able, but not willing? then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? whence then is evil?” —David…
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THE READING ROOM

Voltaire: The French Enlightenment Is Born

By: Walter Donway

To name Voltaire is to characterize the entire eighteenth century.--Victor Hugo
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Works of Jeremy Bentham: Table of Contents

Jeremy Bentham (author)

Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)

Jeremy Bentham,The Works of Jeremy Bentham,published under the Superintendence of his Executor, John Bowring (Edinburgh: William Tait, 1838-1843). 11 vols.

Vol. 1.…

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Quotes

Politics & Liberty

Socrates as the “gadfly” of the state (4thC BC)

Plato
Full Quote