Mill's On Liberty
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Reading and Writing Workshop
John Stuart Mill – On Liberty
Session 1: Introduction to Mill and the Concept of Liberty
Readings:
Compare Mill’s idea of liberty as self-development and protection from tyranny with Constant’s distinction between ancient and modern liberty. What forms of liberty are most relevant today?
Session 2: The Tyranny of the Majority
Readings:
How do Mill and Tocqueville approach the dangers of majority rule? Evaluate their concerns in light of modern social media or public opinion.
Session 3: Freedom of Speech and Dissent
Readings:
Mill argues that even false opinions contribute to truth. How does this argument compare with Voltaire’s defense of freedom of expression? Should there be any limits?
Session 4: Individuality and Self-Development
Readings:
Discuss the parallels between Mill’s concept of individuality and Emerson’s notion of self-reliance. How do both authors view the relationship between the individual and society?
Session 5: Limits of Social Authority
Readings:
What are the appropriate limits to state or social control over individual behavior? Compare Mill and Paine's views on the role of government in protecting liberty.
Session 6: Liberty and Utility
Readings:
Mill was influenced by Bentham but diverged in significant ways. Analyze how Mill reconciles liberty with utilitarianism. Is liberty a means to the greatest happiness or an end in itself?
Session 7: Debating Mill in Context
Readings:
Engage with Mill's arguments about liberty using Harriet Taylor Mill’s feminist lens. How does gender influence the experience of liberty, and how might On Liberty be read differently in light of her work?
Session 8: Final Project – Liberty in Practice
Assignment:
Write a persuasive essay, editorial, or dialogue in which you apply Mill’s principles to a modern debate (e.g., digital surveillance, hate speech, bodily autonomy, or education). Support your argument with at least two historical texts from the workshop.
Session 1: Introduction to Mill and the Concept of Liberty
Readings:
- John Stuart Mill, On Liberty, Chapter I: Introductory
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34901 - Benjamin Constant, The Liberty of Ancients Compared with That of Moderns (1819)
https://oll.libertyfund.org/title/constant-political-writings#lf0572_head_005
Compare Mill’s idea of liberty as self-development and protection from tyranny with Constant’s distinction between ancient and modern liberty. What forms of liberty are most relevant today?
Session 2: The Tyranny of the Majority
Readings:
- On Liberty, Chapter II: Of the Liberty of Thought and Discussion
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34901 - Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America (Volume I, Chapter XV – Unlimited Power of the Majority)
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/815
How do Mill and Tocqueville approach the dangers of majority rule? Evaluate their concerns in light of modern social media or public opinion.
Session 3: Freedom of Speech and Dissent
Readings:
- On Liberty, continued Chapter II
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34901 - Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet), A Treatise on Toleration (1763), Chapter XXII
https://oll.libertyfund.org/title/voltaire-toleration-and-other-essays#lf0051_head_066
Mill argues that even false opinions contribute to truth. How does this argument compare with Voltaire’s defense of freedom of expression? Should there be any limits?
Session 4: Individuality and Self-Development
Readings:
- On Liberty, Chapter III: Of Individuality
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34901 - Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/16643
Discuss the parallels between Mill’s concept of individuality and Emerson’s notion of self-reliance. How do both authors view the relationship between the individual and society?
Session 5: Limits of Social Authority
Readings:
- On Liberty, Chapter IV: Of the Limits to the Authority of Society over the Individual
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34901 - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man (1791), Part I
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/31271
What are the appropriate limits to state or social control over individual behavior? Compare Mill and Paine's views on the role of government in protecting liberty.
Session 6: Liberty and Utility
Readings:
- On Liberty, Chapter V: Applications
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34901 - Jeremy Bentham, An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation, Chapters I–IV
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11228
Mill was influenced by Bentham but diverged in significant ways. Analyze how Mill reconciles liberty with utilitarianism. Is liberty a means to the greatest happiness or an end in itself?
Session 7: Debating Mill in Context
Readings:
- Select excerpts from all five chapters of On Liberty
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34901 - Harriet Taylor Mill, The Enfranchisement of Women (1851)
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Enfranchisement_of_Women
Engage with Mill's arguments about liberty using Harriet Taylor Mill’s feminist lens. How does gender influence the experience of liberty, and how might On Liberty be read differently in light of her work?
Session 8: Final Project – Liberty in Practice
Assignment:
Write a persuasive essay, editorial, or dialogue in which you apply Mill’s principles to a modern debate (e.g., digital surveillance, hate speech, bodily autonomy, or education). Support your argument with at least two historical texts from the workshop.