The Library
Rawls's difference principle as compensation for social immobility
Tools
Machin, Dean (2013) Rawls's difference principle as compensation for social immobility. The Political Quarterly, Volume 84 (Number 4). pp. 506-514. doi:10.1111/j.1467-923X.2013.12049.x ISSN 1467-923X.
Research output not available from this repository.
Request-a-Copy directly from author or use local Library Get it For Me service.
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-923X.2013.12049.x
Abstract
Outside academia, John Rawls's theory of justice—justice as fairness—has had little impact. This article is part of a broader project to rectify this. I offer a distinctive, second-best, argument for Rawls's difference principle. The difference principle requires that inequalities in income and wealth are justified only if they benefit society's least-advantaged citizens. My paper argues that, slightly-modified, the difference principle is an excellent principle of redress in light of the UK's continued failure to give all citizens fair career chances. I show how we might realize the difference principle at the level of policy through tax rate reductions or negative tax rates. I conclude that if you don't want to accept the second-best argument for the difference principle you must get serious about giving all citizens fair career chances. As I suggest, this task is extremely difficult.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Philosophy | ||||
Journal or Publication Title: | The Political Quarterly | ||||
Publisher: | Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. | ||||
ISSN: | 1467-923X | ||||
Official Date: | 2013 | ||||
Dates: |
|
||||
Volume: | Volume 84 | ||||
Number: | Number 4 | ||||
Page Range: | pp. 506-514 | ||||
DOI: | 10.1111/j.1467-923X.2013.12049.x | ||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access |
Request changes or add full text files to a record
Repository staff actions (login required)
View Item |