Chapter 4 No Exit: Framing the Problem of Justice
BibTeX
@MISC{Palmer_chapter4,
author = {Tom G. Palmer},
title = {Chapter 4 No Exit: Framing the Problem of Justice},
year = {}
}
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Abstract
Recent years have seen a marked retreat from cosmopolitan liberalism in moral and political theory. What is remarkable is that that retreat has been carried out under the banner of liberalism. Many modern “liberals ” (in contrast to “classical ” liberals) have taken as their touchstone adherence to the redistributive welfare state. The obligations and benefits allocated by welfare states are normally limited to particular groups of subjects or citizens; they are not universal. John Rawls has prepared the field for much of that retreat. In his books and various articles Rawls has combined powerful sources of legitimacy for institutions and practices—mutual advantage, fairness, and agreement—into one account: justice as fairness. When he stipulates that the principles of a just society “are those a person would choose for the design of a society in which his enemy is to assign him his place, ” Rawls builds in a highly illiberal premise into his theory of justice by foreclosing the exit option. What was implicit in A Theory of Justice is made explicit in Political Liberalism: in setting out “the context of a social contract, ” Rawls insists that “membership in our society is given, that we would not know what we would
Keyphrases
illiberal premise cosmopolitan liberalism powerful source john rawls welfare state recent year many modern liberal practice mutual advantage marked retreat political theory social contract various article rawls touchstone adherence exit option particular group political liberalism redistributive welfare state classical liberal
