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📘 Rawls asks what fair institutions owe everyone

John Rawls's A Theory of Justice, published in 1971, begins with a political question: what principles should govern the basic structure of society?

3
lessons
~15 min
to learn
Adults
level
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What you’ll learn

  1. Justice and the original positionState Rawls’s question and explain the original position and veil of ignorance.Rawls asks for fair terms governing the basic structure, modeled through the veil of ignorance.
  2. Liberty, opportunity, and inequalityPresent the two principles and why inequalities must benefit the least advantaged.Equal basic liberties come first; fair opportunity and the difference principle constrain inequalities.
  3. Method and debateDescribe reflective equilibrium and major libertarian and communitarian criticisms.Reflective equilibrium tests principles against judgments; Nozick and communitarians challenged the framework.

Questions this course answers

What is the veil of ignorance designed to prevent?

The veil removes knowledge of personal position so principles cannot be chosen to favor a known class or identity.

Why does Rawls give basic liberties priority over economic gains?

The first principle secures the political and personal freedoms needed to form and revise a plan of life.

When does Rawls permit an inequality?

The difference principle permits inequality only if it improves the prospects of the least advantaged.

Match each idea to its role

Rawls uses a choice model and a method of revision together rather than treating one thought experiment as the whole argument.

What is the central disagreement between Rawls and Nozick?

The disagreement concerns whether a just distribution is a pattern institutions must maintain or the result of legitimate historical steps.

What did communitarian critics question?

Communitarian criticism targets the abstraction of the person in the original position and the role of social attachments.

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