John Stuart Mill and the Employment of Married Women: Reconciling Utility and Justice

This paper explores the link between utilitarianism and feminism through the positions of John Stuart Mill. We try to reconcile Mill's conviction about the necessity of establishing equality between sexes with his position concerning the employment of married women. This reconciliation has already been attempted by other researchers. Our perspective is slightly different in that we seek to establish a globally coherent position by examining Mill's various writings in order to evaluate his feminism in terms of his utilitarian philosophy.