One of the founders of the school of "philosophic radicalism," or utilitarianism, which made a considerable impact on nineteenth-century British thought, James Mill was the son of a shoemaker who had married a farmer's daughter. Born on 6 April 1773 in Forfarshire, Scotland, Mill benefited from his mother's resolution to raise her son to be a gentleman, and accordingly he was permitted to study instead of following in his father's footsteps. He was fortunate not only to be educated in the superior Scottish secondary system, but also to be chosen as an appropriate object of charity by a near neighbor, Lady Jane Stuart, who started a fund to educate poor men for the ministry.

The young Mill became tutor to Wilhelmina, the Stuarts' daughter, and spent much time at Fettercairn House, their residence. Thanks to their assistance, he entered Edinburgh University in 1790, studying Greek (at which he excelled), Latin, political...