The Life of the Characters in Jeremy Bentham's Works

Bentham was born into a conservative lawyer family in Spitford, East London. He was regarded as a child prodigy, because when he was a toddler, he read the vast history of England at his father's desk and began to learn Latin at the age of three.

After graduating from Westminster Middle School, Bentham entered Queen's College of Oxford University in 1760, and received his bachelor's degree and master's degree in 1763 and 1766 respectively. He studied law, and 1769 obtained the qualification as a lawyer, but he soon felt that English law lacked a rational basis and was tired of it. He thinks that English law is practical and subjective. He hopes that the guiding principles of law can draw nutrition from science, instead of being dominated by pure privilege, selfishness and superstition like18th century. With his father's permission and help, Bentham began to study law and began to write books. But in the early days, Bentham fought alone and had little influence. It was not until the beginning of the19th century that he devoted himself to social policy and the specialized practical work of the government that the situation changed greatly.

Bentham has established friendship with many influential historical celebrities. In Britain, such as Adam Smith, a famous scholar, and some leaders of the French Revolution (he was honored as an honorary citizen of France, but he also frankly criticized the theory of natural rights that supported the revolution and the abuse of violence after the jacobin Party came to power). Between 1808 and 18 10, he established a personal friendship with Francisco de Miranda, the pioneer of Latin American independence movement, and visited Miranda's residence in London when she was in exile in Britain.

1823, he and james mill founded the Westminster Review, a periodical which was mainly composed of "philosophical radicals" (a group of young believers influenced by bentham).

Bentham occupies an important position in the history of University College London and is recognized as the "father of spirit" of University College London. Although he is often recorded in the school's founding project, in fact, he did not actually participate in the construction of UCL (University College London) (he was 78 years old when the college was founded). Because Bentham himself is a strong advocate of the theory that higher education should be widely popularized, and it is linked with the early purpose of the school "education for all is equal" (provided, of course, that he has the ability to pay tuition fees). This school is the first university in Britain that ignores all the differences in gender, religious beliefs and political opinions, which are directly related to Bentham's educational thoughts. The word "internationalization" was invented by Bentham himself.

According to Bentham's own wishes, his body was displayed in the north corridor of UCL main building, which was completely open to the public. Bentham stated in his will that he hoped his body would be preserved as a permanent memorial, and this instruction was carried out without reservation. This statue is famous. Unfortunately, there was a tragic mistake when dealing with the head, which caused the head to be disfigured. People have to use a wax head instead, but the real head has been hidden at the foot of his statue for a long time, and it is often stolen, which naturally becomes the topic of various campus jokes. Of course, the makers of jokes are all from King's College, and UCL has been its competitor since its birth.