A Fragment on Government

Jeremy Bentham's A Fragment on Government is a critical response to Sir William Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765-1769). Bentham discusses the weaknesses of the British government as well as the faults within Blackstone's treatises. He argues for the principle of utility, to logically lead his readers to the idea that a legal code should seek the happiness of the largest amount of people. Bentham criticizes Blackstone's praise of common law in favor of a more equal soci...