PHIL201 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Stakeholder Theory, Distributive Justice, Egalitarianism
7 Jun 2018
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WEEK 5
review:!
-Stakeholder theory: egalitarian orientation"
-Moral minimum: less clearly aligned with egalitarianism."
"
Arguments for egalitarianism"
Rawls:"
-social contract"
-Intuitive equality"
Liberal:!
- states must minimise inequalities in income and wealth to ensure high social mobility and
equality of opportunity"
Consequentialist argument:!
-equal societies have higher levels of welfare"
Libertarianism and distributive justice "
-voluntary exchanges of property owners in the market"
—> a just distribution "
-natural inequalities in talent & unequal access to resources, education, healthcare will end up in
social and economic inequalities over time"
-Unequal outcomes, unequal opportunities"
Egalitarian justice:"
Individual liberties must be protected"
“Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought. A theory however
elegant and economical must be rejected or revised if it is untrue; likewise laws and institutions no
matter how efficient and well-arranged must be reformed or abolished if they are unjust. Each
person possesses an inviolability founded on justice that even the welfare of society as a whole
cannot override.”
(Rawls, A Theory of Justice, p.3)"
Social contract theory:!
what kinds of political and economic arrangements would it be rational for someone to accept if
she were able to choose and had to reach agreement with everyone else in society"
Problem:!
- people prefer schemes that protect their own interests"
Solution: "
-we have to choose from a position of genuine impartiality "
-—> we would choose broadly egalitarian principles"
The ‘veil of ignorance’ ensures that the original choice situation filters out the kinds of biases and
prejudices that characterize ordinary decision making"
-dont know their sex, social circumstances of attributes"
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
States must minimise inequalities in income and wealth to ensure high social mobility and equality of opportunity. Voluntary exchanges of property owners in the market. Natural inequalities in talent & unequal access to resources, education, healthcare will end up in social and economic inequalities over time. Justice is the rst virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought. A theory however elegant and economical must be rejected or revised if it is untrue; likewise laws and institutions no matter how e cient and well-arranged must be reformed or abolished if they are unjust. Each person possesses an inviolability founded on justice that even the welfare of society as a whole cannot override. (rawls, a theory of justice, p. 3) Social contract theory: what kinds of political and economic arrangements would it be rational for someone to accept if she were able to choose and had to reach agreement with everyone else in society.
