The Works of Jeremy Bentham, Published Under the Superintendence of His Executor, John Bowring. the

Publisher Marketing: Title: The Works of Jeremy Bentham, published under the superintendence of his executor, John Bowring. [The "General Preface" signed: W. W. With "An Introduction to the Study of Bentham's Works, by J. H. Burton," "Memoirs of Bentham, by John Bowring," and a portrait.]Publisher: British Library, Historical Print EditionsThe British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. It is one of the world's largest research libraries holding over 150 million items in all known languages and formats: books, journals, newspapers, sound recordings, patents, maps, stamps, prints and much more. Its collections include around 14 million books, along with substantial additional collections of manuscripts and historical items dating back as far as 300 BC. The GENERAL HISTORICAL collection includes books from the British Library digitised by Microsoft. This varied collection includes material that gives readers a 19th century view of the world. Topics include health, education, economics, agriculture, environment, technology, culture, politics, labour and industry, mining, penal policy, and social order. ++++The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to insure edition identification: ++++ British Library Bentham, Jeremy; Bowring, John; 1843, 38-43. 11 vol.; 8 . C.61.c.15. Contributor Bio:  Bentham, Jeremy Jeremy Bentham was both radical and brave, and he was years ahead of his time on social issues. His ideas helped lead to the Social Democratic welfare state adopted by the countries of Europe that today enjoy the highest standard of living. He wrote in favor of legalized homosexuality, equality for women, the right to divorce, prison reform, police reform, separation of church and state, freedom of speech, the abolition of slavery, the abolition of the death penalty, children's rights, and animal rights. Bentham is known as the founder of utilitarianism, a political philosophy that encourages public officials to adopt policies that provide the greatest good for the greatest number. His principles on economics, philosophy, statesmanship, and law influenced governments not only in Europe but also in the Americas. Several Central and South American governments called upon him to help draft their constitutions. Indeed, in Latin America he became known as "the legislator of the world." Much of Bentham's reputation rests on his Principles of Morals and Legislation, published in 1789. Even Napoleon called it a work of genius. Many of Ben-tham's works went unpublished, however, because they were simply too radical to find an audience, much less a publisher. To our knowledge, no other Englishman of his day was writing in defense of homosexuality, a subject never discussed in the England of his day except when necessary to convict and publicly hang someone accused of engaging in a homosexual act. The historian Louis Crompton, who presumably saw much of Ben-tham's unpublished material, claims Bentham wrote more than five hun-dred pages arguing for homosexuality in which he relied heavily on classical Greek literature to make his case. None of Bentham's essays defending homosexuality could be published in his lifetime. The first to appear was Offences Against One's Self, first published in 1931. Bentham was a radical in his religious beliefs, as well. He did not believe that the story of Sodom and Gomorrah was a treatise against homosexuali-ty, as indeed it is not, and he believed the story of David and Jonathan was a homosexual romance, as was the story of Jesus and the "beloved disci-ple."