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A Theory of Justice

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John Rawls's 1971 treatise reconstructing social contract theory for the twentieth century. Rawls asks what principles of justice free and rational people would choose behind a veil of ignorance, a hypothetical original position in which no one knows their own place in society, and argues they would choose equal basic liberties for all together with the difference principle, that social and economic inequalities are justified only if they benefit the least advantaged.

Facts
Publication Year
1971 1
Original Language
English 1
Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

The Veil of Ignorance, Concepts
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Authored By

John Rawls, Philosophers
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

In Branch

Political Philosophy, Branches of Philosophy
Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Sources
1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and Informations.v. John Rawls
Quote, s.v. John Rawls
Rawls first set out justice as fairness in systematic detail in his 1971 book, A Theory of Justice.
View the Source
1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and InformationAuthored By: John RawlsView the Source
1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and InformationIn Category: WorksView the Source
1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and InformationIn Branch: Political PhilosophyView the Source
1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and InformationAssociated With: The Veil of IgnoranceView the Source
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