Fragment On Mackintosh

James Mill (1773-1836), British philosopher, political theorist, historian and psychologist was largely responsible for organizing the influential Bentham followers that became know as the "philosophical radicals", which included David Ricardo, Joseph Hume, J.R. McCulloch, George Grote and John Austin. A prolific writer, Mill is remembered mainly as Bentham's chief disciple, and for his influence on the radicals and in particular on his son John Stuart Mill, the prominent utilitarian thinker. An important work in which Mill attacks Sir James Mackintosh, a leading Whig apologist and critic of the philosophical radicals. Mill defends the utilitarian ethical theory against Mackintosh's article on ethics in the "Encyclopaedia Britannica". "A Fragment" demonstrates Mill's belief that the proper aim of human actions and practices was the promotion of human happiness and is a lucid illustration of his psychological and ethical theories.