sign in sign up
<<
Home , Global justice

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of , a.a. 2015-16 GLOBALISATION AND THEORIES OF JUSTICE PROF. BENEDETTA GIOVANOLA

UNIVERSITY OF MACERATA DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, COMMUNICATION AND A.A. 2015-16 B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16

Justice v a special type of moral concern v a normative concern: what people ought to get and to give v moral entitlements v moral duties v a concern on benefits and burdens of social cooperation v distributive dimension: social or

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16

Justice v principles of justice: how the benefits and burdens of living together are to be shared between us: v principles of justice as principles that play constraints on the way in which we may legitimately restrict one another’s freedom v Rights to spheres of freedom but not unlimited freedom

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16

Theories of Justice v Public / normative theory & political theory v What are our entitlements/duties in terms of justice? Where do they come from? v Different accounts of justice v v (liberal) v … v Different issues of justice v Political rights/freedoms v Socioeconomic rights/duties v v …

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Globalisation and Theories of Justice v What is the impact of globalisation on (theories of) justice? v How and why does globalisation impose us to reframe the accounts and issues of justice? v Some examples of key-issues: v “post-democracy” (Crouch, 2004): states are loosing part of their traditional power v increasing role of MNCs and global capitalism v /peoples/states v the “fact of pluralism” (Rawls, 1993) and the possibility of inter-culturally shared values v international migration v …

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16

Globalisation and Theories of Justice

From to global justice...

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Globalisation and Theories of Justice v Key questions: v Should the demands of justice apply only at the domestic level or are there demands of justice that apply even beyond the boundaries of the state? v Should the same principles of justice that apply at the domestic level be extended at the global level or should the principles be different?

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16

Teories of (social) justice v Utilitarianism: focus on utility v Libertarianism: focus on individual freedom v : focus on the community v Liberal egalitarianism: individual freedom and social equality (fairness)

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Utilitarianism: main features v Utilitarianism has been for a long time the prevailing normative framework for the evaluation of states of affairs and social arrangements v According to utilitarianism a just society is a happy society, or a society that maximizes social utility v It was born as an ethical theory thanks to Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) v It is a consequentialist ethical theory v It is a welfarist v It is at the same time individualistic and anti- individualistic (sum-ranking and aggregation) B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Utilitarianism: main features vClassical utilitarianism: utility as pleasure (hedonism) vNeoutilitarianism : utility as preference satisfaction (Harsanyi) vClassical utilitarianism: social welfare as (aggregate) sum-ranking of individual levels of well-being vNeoutilitarianism : social welfare as average utility level B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Utilitarianism: main features vClassical utilitarianism = act utilitarianism: a morally right act is one that, in the situation the actor is actually in, will maximize social utility vNeoutilitarianism = rule utilitarianism: a morally right act is one that: o conforms to the correct moral rule applicable to this sort of situation o whereas the correct moral rule is that particular behavioral rule that would maximize social utility if it were followed by everybody in all social situations of this particular type B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Utilitarianism: main problems v Well-being/utility as pleasure-happiness: o Strength: pleasure is surely good for us o Weaknesses: - “experience machine” and a Matrix-like world (Nozick, 1974) - Mental adaptation (Sen, 1999) - Radical B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Utilitarianism: main problems v Well-being/utility as preference satisfaction o 1 – Actual preferences o Strength: measurability (by observing people’s choices) o Weaknesses: - Misinformation - Akrasia - Preference for state of affairs that could make me worse rather than better off B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Utilitarianism: main problems v Well-being/utility as preference satisfaction o 2 – Laundered-rational-informed preferences o Strength: increased plausibility o Weaknesses: - Other-regarding vs self-regarding preferences (what is ultimately good for a person) - Preference changes (what is ultimately good for a person) - Do people really prefer what is good for them? (what is ultimately good for a person) B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Utilitarianism: main problems vDistributive dimension and problems regarding unjust inequalities (social justice) vEfficiency prevails against equity (fairness), that is, a well-arranged society is to be preferred to a well- ordered society (vs. Rawls) vFundamental issues, such as rights, become mere instruments for the pursuit of utility maximisation vStrong subjectivism vNarrow understanding of the human being, merely seen as utility maximizer

B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Libertarianism: main features v Focus on individual liberty and individual rights (Nozick, 1974) v A just society is a free society v A society is just if and only if everyone in that society is entitled to what he/she has (Nozick: entitlement theory) v Coherent system of property rights v Minimal state: the role of governments is restricted to the protection of property rights B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Libertarianism: main features 1. Principle of self-ownership u of the individual: agents fully own themselves and have right to their lives, talents and the fruits of their labour o no coercion (for example: the case of prostitution, euthanasia, organ trade, etc.) u only three restrictions to self-ownership: 1. no self-slavery, even if it were the outcome of a free choice 2. paternalism towards young children and restriction of their liberty 3. restriction of self-ownership of those who endanger someone else’s liberty B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Libertarianism: main features 2. Principles regulating property rights in external things u principle of justice in acquisition: o the first people to acquire some part of the material world should exclude others from it, but why? o Lockean provision and compensation: an exclusive acquisition of the external world is just, if, after the acquisition, there is “enough and as good left in common for others” u principle of justice in transfer: voluntary transaction and fair contracts (no misinformation, etc.) B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Libertarianism: main features u principle of rectification for past (applying to acquisitions or transfers that do not satisfy the principle of just acquisition or the principle of just transfer) :

o information about the actual course of events + historical information B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Libertarianism: main problems v The identified principles of justice are very controversial and not suitable for practical purposes: the details of are not available and, even if they were available, the counterfactual causal chains could not be reliably determined v No consideration for the outcomes of distribution v No consideration for the configuration of distribution v Retrospective focus and no concern for a “better” society v Anarcho-capitalism and neoliberism B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Libertarianism: main problems v Problem of efficiency v Problem of (in)equality v Problem of freedom o formal freedom vs real freedom (for each and every individual) o Fetishism of natural rights rather than a really free society B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Communitarianism: main features v Focus on the community (Sandel, Taylor) v Narrative conception of the self (MacIntyre: story of my life as embedded in the story of those communities from which I derive my identity) v Obligations of membership, solidarity (in addition to voluntary and universal duties) v Focus on social pre-conditions of self- determination v Non-neutrality and politics of the common good v Substantive conception of the good life B. Giovanola, Globalisation and Theories of Justice, a.a. 2015-16 Communitarianism: main problems v Personal autonomy and self-determination v Self as the outcome of a “discovery” rather than of a choice v Moral arbitrariness of our belongings (the country, the family we where born in, etc.) v Politics of the common good vs. minority rights? what about minorities that not share the prevailing (=community based) idea of the common good/ good life? v The problem of paternalism