Justice: What's the Right Thing to Do?
This summary gives a clear representation of the substance from Michael Sandel's book. If you don't have time to read the 10 chapters it is still possible to get your course by learning the substance in these few A4's.
justice gdi global development global development issues minor rechtvaardigheid verdeling van welvaart fontys michael sandel sandel whats the right thing to do
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Ethics Book Summary (Justice by Michael Sandel)
Complete summary of the book Justice - What is the right thing to do? Michael Sandel
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Justice
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Summary Justice
Sandel 1 & 2
Teleological Goals/objectives: tele = goal/objective/purpose. Whether an action is just, depends
on the goal/objective/purpose pursued with it.
Deontological Duties/rules: deo = duty. Whether an action is just, depends on the line of duty that
underlines it.
Tree approaches - Welfare
to justice - Freedom
- Virtue
The case of the The case involves five explorers who are caved in following a landslide. They learn
speluncean via intermittent radio contact that, without food, they are likely to starve to death
explorers before they can be rescued. They decide to engage in cannibalism, and select one
of their number to be killed and eaten so that the others may survive. They decide
who should be killed by throwing a pair of dice. After the four survivors are
rescued, they are charged and found guilty of the murder of the fifth explorer.
Utilitarianism The highest principle of morality is to maximize happiness, the overall balance
of pleasure over pain.
Bentham Founder of utilitarianism. His main idea was to maximize happiness and that the
right thing to do is maximize utility. Utility: producing pleasure of happiness an
preventing pain or suffering.
Human psychology:
- Pain
- Pleasure
Example
Rounding up baggers (p.35):
Bentham concludes that the sum of the pains suffered by the public is greater than
whatever unhappiness is felt by the baggers off to the workhouse (where they have
to work to stay of the streets).
Objection 1: Human rights and human dignity have a moral basis that lies beyond utility.
Individual rights The city of happiness (p.40) Omelas
The story is about a city of happiness, where the happiness only can exist because
of the child’s misery. But are those terms morally acceptable? The first objection to
Bentham’s utilitarianism, the one that appeals to fundamental human rights, says
they are not – even if they lead to a city of happiness. It would be wrong to violate
the right of the innocent child, even for the sake of the happiness of the multitude.
1. Objection Utilitarianism claims to offer a science of morality, based on measuring,
2: A aggregating and calculating happiness. Can all values be captured by a common
common currency of value?
currency
of value Cost-benefit analysis
- Philip Morris (tobacco company) even to the point of placing a dollar value
on human life (p.42).
- Ford Pinto (exploding gas tanks) Ford has been aware (p.43).
- Thorndike: how much would you have to be paid to….? He thought his
findings lent support to the idea that all goods can be measured and
compared on a single scale.
John Stuart Mill (His father was a friend of Bentham).
, Freedom is the most important word for Mill. He argues that an individual has the
right to do what he wants as long as he does not harm another (no harm principle
had a big influence on liberalism). He defends freedom to express an opinion. Even
if everyone has the same opinion except for one person, the majority still has no
more right to silence that one individual than the other way around. Freedom of
speech benefits the truth and that makes that we are, at the end, better off.
Individual freedom and social progress go hand in hand according to Mill.
Development, emancipation and education are key words. For Mill the final goal is
never set.
Sandel 3 & 4
Fair distribution The richest 1 percent of Americans possess over a third of the
of wealth country’s wealth, more than the combined wealth of the bottom 90%
of American families. The top 10 percent of American households
take in 42 percent of all income and
Economic Is economic inequality just? Should we redistribute (by taxing)?
inequality Utilitarian opinion: redistribution is just. It causes a great happiness
for the poor, rich would scarcely miss the money (more utility).
Utilitarian opinion: redistribution is not just because redistribution
reduces the incentive to work and invest, leading to a decline in
productivity (less utility).
Libertarian opinion: redistribution is not just because redistribution
violates a fundamental right: liberty. Their central claim is that each of
us has a fundamental right to liberty – the right to do whatever we
want with the things we own, provided we respect other people’s
rights to do the same.
Government Should government…
- Oblige wearing motorcycle helmets?
- Oblige wearing seatbelts?
- Prohibit prostitution?
- Tax income?
Do we own Libertarian central claim: fundamental right to liberty: the right to do
ourselves? whatever we want with the things we own, provided we respect other
people’s right to do the same.
- Paternalisme
- Morals legislation
- Redistribution of income or wealth
Free market Taxing the rich to help the poor coerces the rich. It violates their right
philosophy to do the things they want whit the things they own. According to
Robert Nozick there is nothing wrong with economic equality as
such. Nozick rejects patterned theories of justice in favor of those that
honor the choices people make in free markets. He argued that
distributive justice depends on two requirements – justice in initial
holdings and justice in transfer.
The first question; is the resource you used to make your money were
legitimately yours in the first place. The second ask; if you made your
money either through free exchanges in the marketplace or from gifts
voluntarily bestowed upon you by others. According to Nozick the
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