On Socialism

In the mid-nineteenth century Mill turned his sharp analytic eye toward the issues raised by social critics such as Robert Owen, Saint-Simon, and others. These early socialists sought to reform, if not render extinct, the capitalism that they believed had wrought social upheaval and discontent. In several preliminary chapters, prepared as a prelude to a full-blown critique of nineteenth-century socialism, Mill seeks to understand the thrust of socialist theory and to appraise the impact of its potential implementation. These chapters, never before published in book form, were originally made public in the pages of the Fortnightly Review in 1879.