Political Philosophy- Exam II

H.L.A. Hart

Legal Positivism:

• Core Beliefs: Law and morality are distinct (Separability Thesis). Law should be analyzed logically (Analytic Jurisprudence) rather than sociologically.

• Rejection: Rejects the "Imperative Theory" (law is just a gunman’s command), arguing that rules have an internal aspect where people accept them as standards.

Lon Fuller

Thesis: Internal Morality of Law

• Core Beliefs: Rejects positivism; argues a system must follow procedural morality (be public, consistent, understandable) to essentially be "law".

• Key Examples: The "dissolute king" (Rex) who fails to make law, and the Nazi statutes which were so arbitrary they justified the punishment of those who used them (e.g., the Nazi wife case).

Ronald Dworkin

• Thesis: Law as Integrity

  Core Beliefs: Law is not just rules, but includes moral principles. Judges must interpret law like a "chain novel," finding the answer that best "fits" precedent and "justifies" it morally. Rights act as trumps against economic efficiency.

Richard Posner

Thesis: Economic Approach to Law (EAL)

• Core Beliefs: Humans are rational wealth maximizers. The best way to interpret law is to maximize economic efficiency and value (willingness to pay).

• Defense: EAL is objective and avoids the "mushiness" of moral philosophy.

Margaret Radin

Thesis: Pragmatist Feminist Jurisprudence

• Core Beliefs: Truth is tentative and evolved from experience. We must adopt an "embodied perspectivist" view (rejecting the "view from nowhere") and dissolve traditional dichotomies like theory/practice.

• Goal: Use pragmatism to solve "double binds" (e.g., the commodification of women's bodies)

Emma Goldman

Thesis: Anarchism

• Core Beliefs: The three greatest oppressors are Religion (mind), Property (needs), and Government (conduct).

• Argument: We must reject external authority. She argues the State creates disorder and violence, whereas Anarchism represents natural order and peace.

John Rawls

Thesis: Justice as Fairness (Liberalism)

• Core Beliefs: Justice is selected from behind a "veil of ignorance".

• Two Principles: (1) Maximum equal liberty; (2) Inequalities are allowed only if they benefit the least advantaged (Difference Principle).

• State: Assumes pluralism and requires separation of church and state

John Hospers

Thesis: Libertarianism

• Core Beliefs: Self-ownership is absolute. The state's only role is to protect Life, Liberty, and Property from force and fraud.

• Rejection: Rejects all wealth redistribution and social welfare

Abul A'la Mawdudi

Thesis: Political Islam / Theo-Democracy

Core Beliefs: Sovereignty belongs to God alone, not the people. Rejects the separation of church and state. The state functions as a caliphate to enforce God's law.

Ingrid Robeyns

• Thesis: Economic Limitarianism

Core Beliefs: There should be a hard ceiling (limit) on how much wealth one person can hold.

• Arguments: Excess wealth undermines political equality (democracy) and those surplus funds are needed to address urgent unmet needs like poverty.

Charles Taylor

Thesis: Communitarianism

Core Beliefs: Critiques "Atomism" (the liberal view of isolated individuals). Argues we are "socially constituted"—our identity and freedom are only possible within a community, so we owe that community a duty to sustain it.

Virginia Held

Thesis: Feminist Care Ethics

Core Beliefs: Critiques Social Contract theory for modeling society on selfish "economic men".

• Proposal: Society should be understood through the Mother/Child relationship: a bond that is permanent, non-voluntary, and based on care rather than contract

Michel Foucault

Thesis: Power/Knowledge

Core Beliefs: We must stop asking "who rules?" and ask "how does power function?".

• Mechanism: Power is "capillary"—it circulates through institutions (schools, prisons) via disciplinary power to create obedient, "docile bodies"

Bartky & West

Thesis: Feminist/Race Foucauldianism

Core Beliefs: They apply Foucault to show how disciplinary power forces women to "self-surveil" (e.g., beauty standards) and how it constructs racial categories to maintain oppression.