John Stuart Mill's philosophy of persuasion

McCabe, Helen

Abstract

In his youth, John Stuart Mill followed his father’s philosophy of persuasion but, in 1830, Mill adopted a new philosophy of persuasion, trying to lead people incrementally towards the truth from their original stand-points rather than engage them antagonistically. Understanding this change helps us understand apparent contradictions in Mill’s canon, as he disguises some of his more radical ideas in order to bring his audience to re-assess and authentically change their opinions. It also suggests a way of reassessing the relationship between Mill’s public and private works, to which we should look if we are attempting to understand his thought.

Citation

McCabe, H. (2014). John Stuart Mill's philosophy of persuasion. Informal Logic, 34(1), https://doi.org/10.22329/il.v34i1.3869

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 1, 2014
• Publication Date: Mar 1, 2014
• Deposit Date: Sep 15, 2017
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 15, 2017
• Journal: Informal Logic
• Electronic ISSN: 0824-2577
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 34
• Issue: 1
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.22329/il.v34i1.3869
• Keywords: John Stuart Mill; persuasion; James Mill; associationist psychology; history of political thought
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/996620
• Publisher URL: https://ojs.uwindsor.ca/ojs/leddy/index.php/informal_logic/article/view/3869