Colloque « Utilitarianism Debated / L’utilitarisme en débats »

An international and interdisciplinary conference reassessing the legacies of utilitarianism since the 1820s.

Program / Programme

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12

1. Receptions and transformations of utilitarianism
This panel examines the immediate legacies of Bentham’s thought in Britain and in North America in the 1820s and 1830s and the material and political conditions of this reception.

• 9h. Introduction : Emmanuelle de Champs, Claude Gautier, Françoise Orazi
• 9h30. Keynote lecture - James E. Crimmins, Huron University College, Canada
  " Utilitarian Philosophy - Receptions, Transformations, Applications "
• 11h. Tim Causer, Bentham Project, University College London
  " Producting the Bowring edition "
• 11h45. Peter Niesen, University of Hamburg and Collegium de Lyon
  " Bentham’s Constitutive Power and the Failure of Philosophic Radicalism (1820-1832) "

2. Utilitarianism and Socialism
In the 1820s and 1830s, utilitarian arguments circulated in reformist circles alongside other attempts at building a « science of society ». This panel examines the political, personal and intellectual connections between utilitarian and early socialists movements in France and in Britain.
Chair : Myriam-Isabelle Ducrocq, Université Paris Nanterre

• 14h. Ophélie Siméon, Paris III Sorbonne Nouvelle
  " Anna Doyle Wheeler and the making of utilitarian feminism "
• 14h45. Benjamin Bourcier, Université Catholique de Lille
  " Trois thèses sur les relations entre utilitarisme et socialisme (1817-1840) "
• 15h30. Vuko Andric, University of Linköping and Philipp Schink, University of Oldenburg
  " Voluntariness, & Cooperation : William Thompson’s utilitarian Socialism "
• 16.45. Nathalie Sigot, Université Paris I and UMR Triangle
  " L’égalité dans la tradition économique utilitariste "

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13

3. John Stuart Mill and Utilitarianism
This panel reassesses the nature of J.S. Mill’s utilitarianism and his transformation of Bentham’s ideas in the light of recent research on gender, ethics and religion.

• 9h30. Françoise Orazi, Lyon 2
  " Is Mill still a Utilitarian ? "
• 10h15. Aurélie Knüfer,Université Paul-Valéry (Montpellier) & Institut Universitaire de France
  " ’The higher the kind of enjoyment, the greater the degree’ : les plaisirs selon Harriet Taylor et John Stuart Mill "
• 11h15.Antis Loizides, University of Cyprus
  " Can John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism take Dignity seriously ? "
• 12h. Jean-Pierre Cléro, Université de Rouen
  " John Stuart Mill et la religion "

4. Utilitarianism and Justice
From Sidgwick to Parfit, twentieth-century political and legal thought has continued to engage with utilitarian and consequentialist theses.

• 14h15. Keynote lecture. David Weinstein, Wake Forest University
  " Sidgwick’s Parfit "
• 15h15. Christophe Salvat, CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université
  " Sidgwick, impartiality and close relations "
• 16h. Guillaume Tusseau, École de droit de Sciences Po
  " Inventer le droit constitutionnel et ne pas en vouloir : les ambiguïtés du constitutionnalisme de Bentham "

>> Consulter le programme / Programme updates

Comité scientifique / Scientific coordination :

Emmanuelle de Champs, CY Cergy Paris Université (Agora)
Claude Gautier, ENS de Lyon (Triangle)
Françoise Orazi, Université Lyon 2 (Triangle)

Informations pratiques / Practical information

Lieux / Venue :

• Thursday December 12, ENS de Lyon, site Monod, 46 allée d’Italie, 69007 Lyon, France
• Friday December 13, ENS de Lyon, site Descartes, 15, parvis René Descartes, 69007 Lyon, France

Entrée libre mais inscription obligatoire.
Free but mandatory registration. Access to the campus will only be permitted for registered participants.

Contact et inscription / Contact and registration :
Emmanuelle.de-champs@cyu.fr

Partenaires / Funding and administrative support :

Labex Comod, UMR Triangle, CY Agora, CY Advanced Studies and Centre Bentham (École de droit de Sciences Po).