6. JUSTICE

  • Topics Covered:

    • Normative theories of justice

    • Distinctions between procedural justice and distributive justice

    • John Rawls' philosophical contributions to justice

General Definition of Justice

  • Definition: Justice varies significantly by context.

  • Historical Reference: Corpus Iuris Civilis from the 6th century defines justice as:

    • "The constant and perpetual will to render to each his due."

    • Elements of this definition include:

    • Treatment of individuals

    • Claims that can be made against agents

    • Impartiality and consistent application

    • Scholarly reference: Miller, 2021, Section 1

    • Notable Figure: Justinian I (482-565)

Forms of Justice

  • 1. Procedural Justice

    • Focuses on the decision-making processes.

    • Important aspects of procedural justice (Shively & Schultz, 2022):

    • Non-arbitrariness

    • No violation of basic rights

    • Consideration of special social needs

    • Granting voice and participation opportunities

    • Outcomes produced by procedures may also be evaluated.

  • 2. Distributive Justice

    • Centered around the principles of equality.

    • Questions of equality in justice include:

    • Equality of outcomes

    • Inequality of needs

    • Inequality of contributions

    • Equality of treatment

    • Equality of opportunities

Thought Experiment on Justice

  • Scenario: Participation in a virtual reality simulation game

    • Players represented by avatars with diverse attributes (sex, age, race, intelligence).

    • Attributes randomly assigned and unchangeable.

  • Decision Requirement: Players must decide which principles of justice should govern the rules for collective decisions and economic organization in the game.

John Rawls on Justice

  • Key Work: A Theory of Justice (1971)

  • Main Components:

    • A structured method for deriving principles of justice.

    • For more discussion, refer to Garner (2023): pages 112-115.

  • Key Ideas:

    • Starts from a hypothetical "original position" under a "veil of ignorance".

    • From self-interested choices under specific assumptions, principles of justice can be derived.

Rawls’ Principles of Justice

  • 1. Liberty Principle

    • Equal claim to basic rights and liberties.

  • 2. Fair Opportunity Principle

    • Social and economic inequalities are acceptable only when positions are open to everyone under fair equality of opportunity.

  • 3. Difference Principle

    • Inequalities must benefit the least-advantaged members of society.

Further Questions of Justice

  • Categories:

    • Intergenerational justice

    • Climate justice

    • Global justice

Concluding Remarks

  • The question of what constitutes justice lacks simple answers.

  • Main focus of the session was on normative theories of justice, which offer guidance for:

    • Designing basic institutions of a polity.

    • Distributing goods effectively.