Floyd Parsons

Thomas Hare and Political Representation in Victorian Britain

 This book is an account of the life and work of Thomas Hare (1806–1891) as a political theorist within the context of the history of party politics in Victorian Britain. It focuses on his principle of personal representation and its association with proportional representation, in opposition to the principle of virtual representation. By linking this debate to contemporary arguments over parliamentary reform, the book demonstrates the relation between political theory and party politics. In so doing, it clarifies the vocabulary concerning Victorian political representation and the debates surrounding it, both inside and outside Parliament. Framed from this perspective, the figure of Thomas Hare emerges from the shadow of John Stuart Mill and assumes a more central position in the history of the theory and practice of political representation in Victorian Britain.

Floyd Parsons' historical research on the British proportional representation movement was done under Henry Pelling at St. John’s College, Cambridge. In England, Parsons lectured on the life and times of Winston Churchill for the Workers’ Educational Association and participated in international conferences on Victorian politics and William Gladstone. His primary interests are the relationship between political theory and party politics and the conflict between science and religion.

Thomas Hare and Political Representation in Victorian Britain. Palgrave Macmillan 2009.