Political Philosophy Philosophy 2B - Ray Critch Lecture 7 - Justice

1. Political PhilosophyPhilosophy 2B - Ray CritchLecture 7 - Justice In this lecture Role of Justice in political philosophy? Types of Justice

2. What is Justice? • Plato’s Approach • What characterizes justice; a.k.a. in what does justice consist? • Cephalus, Thrasymachus, Socrates • Macro v. Micro • Cephalus’ Answer • Thrasymachus’ Answer

3. What is Justice? • Rawls’ Approach • What is the scope of justice; a.k.a. to what kind of things does justice apply? • ‘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.’ (aToJ 1)

4. Dichotomies of Justice • Perfectionist v. Anti-Perfectionist • A question of telos and its impact on justice - the metaphysics of political philosophy • Perfectionist - Aristotle • ‘Our own observation tells us that every state is an association of persons formed with a view to some good purpose. I say ‘good’ because in their actions all men do in fact aim at what they think good.’ (Politics 1)

5. Dichotomies of Justice • Perfectionist - Raz • Really anti-anti-perfectionist. • Perfectionism consists in: • ‘[either] the view that governments should be blind to the truth or falsity of moral ideals, [or that] the falsity, invalidity or stupidity of any other may be a reason for any government action.’ (MoF 108) • However: • ‘The sources of the appeal of anti-perfectionism are sound. It stems from concern for the dignity and integrity of individuals and from a revulsion from letting one section of the community impose its favoured way of life on the rest. These concerns are real and important. They do not, however, justify anti-perfectionism. (MoF 162)

6. Dichotomies of Justice • Anti-Perfectionism • Rawls - in Theory of Justice • ‘As citizens, we are to reject the standard of perfection as a political principle, and for the purposes of justice, avoid any assessment of the relative value of one another’s way of life.’ (388) • Because • ‘Since [subjective] uncertainties plague perfectionist criteria and jeopardize individual liberty, it seems best to rely entirely on the principles of justice which have a more definite structure.’ (291)

7. Dichotomies of Justice • Proceduralist v. Substantivist • What justifies a set of principles? • Proceduralist - a just outcome can be assured by just principles • Rawls, again • ‘Pure procedural justice obtains when there is no independent criterion for the right result: instead there is a correct or fair procedure such that the outcome is likewise correct or fair.’

8. Dichotomies of Justice • Substantivist • Well-being Approach • Raz identifies well-being with success in achieving goals. • ‘The point I am making is about the evaluation of the contribution of a person’s project to the success of his life. It is not a psychological point.’ • Controversial, but accounts for dignity w/out perfectionism.

9. Dichotomies of Justice • Substantivist • Capability Approach • Sen and Nussbaum • ‘I argue that the best approach to this idea of a basic social minimum is provided by an approach that focuses on human capabilities, that is, what people are actually able to do and to be, in a way informed by the intuitive idea of a life that is worthy of the dignity of a human being.’ (FoJ 70)

10. Dichotomies of Justice • Social Justice v. Global Justice • The Scope of Justice - is justice a virtue of particular political societies or of all sociality? • Social Justice • Application of Justice to a self-contained, usually self-sufficient, group. • Rawls, Aristotle, Mill, etc… • Special Obligations and duties of citizenship.

11. Dichotomies of Justice • Global Justice • Sen, Nussbaum, many Rawlsians. • If there are obligations of justice, they do not stop at the ‘water’s edge.’ • Objections to Special Obligations • The Distributive Objection • Moral v. Political Justice