author
William Thompson
b. 1865
Remembered as an early Irish socialist and feminist ally, this nineteenth-century writer challenged inherited ideas about wealth, labor, and women's rights. His work links classical political economy with later cooperative and reform movements.
1 Audiobook
Wigwam wonder tales
by William Thompson
About the author
Born in County Cork on June 30, 1775, William Thompson was an Irish political and philosophical writer whose books pushed hard against inequality. He is best known for bringing utilitarian ideas into arguments about social justice, and for criticizing the way wealth and power were concentrated under early industrial capitalism.
His writing ranged across economics, politics, and reform. Among his best-known works are An Inquiry into the Principles of the Distribution of Wealth and Appeal of One Half of the Human Race, Women, Against the Pretensions of the Other Half, Men, a striking defense of women's political and social equality written in collaboration with the activist Anna Wheeler.
Thompson's ideas helped shape early cooperative thought and later influenced trade union and socialist movements. Even today, he stands out as a writer who tried to connect moral philosophy with everyday questions about work, fairness, and human freedom.