Teorie spravedlnosti Michaela Walzera ve světle deontologické etiky
| Název práce v češtině: | Michael Walzer’s Theory of Justice Through the Lenses of Deontological Ethics |
|---|---|
| Název v anglickém jazyce: | Teorie spravedlnosti Michaela Walzera ve světle deontologické etiky |
| Klíčová slova: | Michael Walzer, Theory of Justice, Spheres of Justice, Complex Equality, Immanuel Kant, Deontological Ethics |
| Klíčová slova anglicky: | Michael Walzer, Theory of Justice, Spheres of Justice, Complex Equality, Immanuel Kant, Deontological Ethics |
| Akademický rok vypsání: | 2021/2022 |
| Typ práce: | bakalářská práce |
| Jazyk práce: | angličtina |
| Ústav: | Katedra politologie (23-KP) |
| Vedoucí / školitel: | Janusz Salamon, Ph.D. |
| Řešitel: | skrytý - zadáno vedoucím/školitelem |
| Datum přihlášení: | 29.11.2021 |
| Datum zadání: | 29.11.2021 |
| Datum a čas obhajoby: | 20.06.2023 08:30 |
| Místo konání obhajoby: | Jinonice - Nový Kampus, B330, 330, seminární místnost IPS |
| Datum odevzdání elektronické podoby: | 03.05.2023 |
| Datum proběhlé obhajoby: | 20.06.2023 |
| Oponenti: | Mgr. Jakub Franěk, Ph.D. |
| Zásady pro vypracování |
| One of the leading proponents in recent contemporary debates is Michael Walzer who proposed a theory of justice which is best encapsulated by two main concepts, namely complex equality, and spheres of justice. His theory is an attempt to continue the discussion put forward by John Rawls by implementing the idea of multiple currencies which would bring about justice in the distribution of social goods among several spheres. Simultaneously, Walzer contends that inequality is inevitable, a rather realist view. Following this, his theory of justice attempts to answer the problem of inequality by putting forward a strict organization of spheres in that equality between them translates to a more just arrangement of society. This is the ideal arrangement for Walzer in so long as there does not exist contamination of one currency in a differing sphere.
This paper will critically analyze Walzer’s theory of justice by highlighting its strengths, whilst identifying its weaknesses. In particular, the thesis will be putting forward that the extraction of a deontological perspective which is at the center of Kantian ethics, would be a necessary supplement to Walzer’s theory. Relating to this would be the heart of deontological ethics, which involves the duty to treat persons as ends in themselves and as autonomous, rational beings. The questions which are then left to be answered are; How does Walzer’s communitarian grounding impact his theory of justice? To what extent can Walzer’s theory be universalized? In what way could it be supplemented? What can adopting a deontological perspective to Walzer’s theory bring about? What other adaptations, if any, may be done to supplement Walzer’s theory of justice? Working hypotheses: 1. The plausibility of Walzer’s pluralistic theory of justice – with its appealing focus on the separation of the spheres of justice and the resulting ‘complex equality’ – is limited by the potentially negative impact of the implications of Walzer’s communitarianism on the distribution of the goods within the spheres. 2. The ethical framework provided by Immanuel Kant’s deontology may help to identify the problematic aspects of Walzer’s theory of justice, as well as to suggest ways to supplement it by defining the ethical red lines (such as fundamental autonomy of each person) that should not be crossed whatever the cultural context of the application of Walzer’s theory of justice. Methodology: The course of action in the first part of the thesis is to analyze the strengths of Walzer’s theory of justice in that the equilibrium between spheres will supremely overshadow the lack of equilibrium that may take place within spheres. This will be presented as a realistic answer. Similarly, Walzer’s culturally-based answer will be discussed and will be first presented as a strength given that the applicability of a universal answer poses an overarching challenge; it may be deemed difficult in more conservative countries where values are not universally, and in some cases, liberally defined. The corresponding part of the thesis will be venturing into the values which people share and how distribution would generally differ among cultures. These values will be presented as a fundamental problem to how Walzer’s spheres would be defined and under what principles these would follow. This demonstrates the clash which exists in Walzer’s theory of justice which can be said to be best encapsulated by his communitarian underpinnings, a component that will also be discussed. Following from this, the idea of applying a deontological perspective where autonomy is respected categorically will be presented as well. And thereafter, a thorough explanation on how this supplement may be adopted to Walzer’s theory of justice will be explained and demonstrated. |
| Seznam odborné literatury |
| Chang, Kwun-Hung. 2003. Complex Equality, Shared Understandings, and Social Criticism: Michael Walzer's Political Philosophy. Master Thesis, Hong Kong: The Chinese University of Hong Kong .
Cohen, Joshua. 1986. " Spheres of Justice: A Defense of Pluralism and Equality. by Michael Walzer." The Journal of Philosophy 457-468. Cuza, Al. I. 2011. "Between the “Spheres of Justice” and the “Right to Citizenship”: The Limits of the Communitarian Theory of Michael Walzer." META: RESEARCH IN HERMENEUTICS, PHENOMENOLOGY, AND PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHY 130-140. Den Hartogh, G.A. 1999. "The Architectonic of Michael Walzer's Theory of Justice." Political Theory 1-33. Dworkin, Ronald. 1983. ‘Spheres of Justice’: An Exchange. July 21. Accessed October 2021. https://www.nybooks.com/articles/1983/07/21/spheres-of-justice-an-exchange/. Freeman, Samuel. 1994. "Utilitarianism, Deontology, and the Priority of Right." Philosophy & Public Affairs 313-349. Gregory, James Henry. n.d. "The Moral Ontology of Walzerian Social Criticism: An Argument for Social Conservatism ." London School of Economics. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/2142/1/U613374.pdf. Hartogh, Govert Den. 1999. "The Architectonic of Michael Walzer's Theory of Justice." Political Theory 491-522. Kasher, Naomi. 1978. "DEONTOLOGY AND KANT." Revue Internationale de Philosophie 551-558. Lang, Richard, and Mark Bell. 2018. "Michael Walzer and Complex Equality." In Complex Equality and the Court of Justice of the European Union, by Richard Lang and Mark Bell. Brill | Nijhoff. Mayer, Robert. Political Theory. "Michael Walzer, Industrial Democracy, and Complex Equality." Political Theory 237-261. Miller, David, and Michael Walzer. 1995. Pluralism, Justice, and Equality. Oxford University Press. Mullenix, Linda S. 1984. "Review: The Limits of "Complex Equality"." Harvard Law Review 1801-1811. Tan, Kok-Chor. 1997. "Kantian Ethics and Global Justice." Social Theory and Practice 53-73. Thomas M. Scanlon, Jr. 1973. "Rawls' Theory of Justice." University of Pennsylvania Law Review 1020-1069. Timmermann, Jens. 2006. "Kantian Duties to the Self, Explained and Defended." Philosophy 505-530. Walzer, Michael. 1984. Spheres Of Justice: A Defense Of Pluralism And Equality. Basic Books. |
| Předběžná náplň práce |
| Introduction
o Subject matter & Methodology Chapter 1: Michael Walzer’s theory of justice o Complex Equality o Plurality of Spheres Chapter 2: The Overarching Limits of Walzer’s Theory of Justice o Communitarianism and the Question of Universality o Rawls‘ Comments Chapter 3: Kantian Ethics – The Best Supplement o The Categorical Imperative: A gateway to universalistic, red-line ethic o The Walzerian Spheres with Respect to the Non-violation of Dignity: The Visual Conclusions References / Bibliography |
| Předběžná náplň práce v anglickém jazyce |
| Introduction
o Subject matter & Methodology Chapter 1: Michael Walzer’s theory of justice o Complex Equality o Plurality of Spheres Chapter 2: The Overarching Limits of Walzer’s Theory of Justice o Communitarianism and the Question of Universality o Rawls‘ Comments Chapter 3: Kantian Ethics – The Best Supplement o The Categorical Imperative: A gateway to universalistic, red-line ethic o The Walzerian Spheres with Respect to the Non-violation of Dignity: The Visual Conclusions |