The Instruments of Evolution: Herbert Spencer's Influence on William Stanley Jevons's Political Thought

This paper investigates Herbert Spencer’s influence on William Stanley Jevons’ political thought. Jevons’ thought was shaped by three ideas, which can be traced back to Spencer: the idea that individuals were no tabula rasa; the belief that evolution was a beneficent process; and the idea that moral sentiment evolved towards perfection. I will also show why Jevons supported the idea of interventionist social reform, which Spencer rejected, and I will argue that this disagreement stemmed from Jevons’ commitment to Jeremy Bentham’s utilitarianism.