8vo (194 x 114 mm). Original purple cloth, spine lettered in gilt (sunning to spine, mild wear to spine ends, 1 1/2 in. split to rear hinge).

FIRST EDITION. PRESENTATION COPY INSCRIBED IN A SECRETARIAL HAND, "FROM THE AUTHOR." On Liberty was begun in 1854 as a short essay which Mill and his wife, Harriet, eventually decided to revise and expand upon. Harriet, who was a noted women's rights advocate, inspired her husband to reconsider many of his earlier opinions on basic morality and the role of women in society. Mill later wrote that On Liberty "was more directly and literally our joint production than anything else which bears my name." When Harriet died suddenly in 1858 Mill abruptly ceased work on the project and submitted it immediately to his publisher.

A great success upon publication, On Liberty has been heavily criticized in subsequent years for its narrow focus in some areas and lack of clearly-formed opinions in others; it was theorized by such thinkers as Matthew Arnold and Thomas Carlyle that "liberty" as conceptualized by Mill could only lead to anarchy. Nonetheless, it is acknowledged as a seminal work in liberal thought, with literary critics Denise Evans and Mary L. Onorato declaring Mill's writings "on government, economics, and logic suggest[ing] a model for society that remains compelling and relevant." Goldsmiths' Library 35525; Kress C7500; PMM 345.