A Short History of Distributive Justice / Edition 1

by Samuel Fleischacker

Overview

Distributive justice in its modern sense calls on the state to guarantee that everyone is supplied with a certain level of material means. Samuel Fleischacker argues that guaranteeing aid to the poor is a modern idea, developed only in the last two centuries.

Earlier notions of justice, including Aristotle’s, were concerned with the distribution of political office, not of property. It was only in the eighteenth century, in the work of philosophers such as Adam Smith and Immanuel Kant, that justice began to be applied to the problem of poverty. To attribute a longer pedigree to distributive justice is to fail to distinguish between justice and charity.

Fleischacker explains how confusing these principles has created misconceptions about the historical development of the welfare state. Socialists, for instance, often claim that modern economics obliterated ancient ideals of equality and social justice. Free-market promoters agree but applaud the apparent triumph of skepticism and social-scientific rigor. Both interpretations overlook the gradual changes in thinking that yielded our current assumption that justice calls for everyone, if possible, to be lifted out of poverty. By examining major writings in ancient, medieval, and modern political philosophy, Fleischacker shows how we arrived at the contemporary meaning of distributive justice.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780674018310
Publisher:	Harvard University Press
Publication date:	09/06/2005
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	204
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Samuel Fleischacker is Professor of Philosophy, University of Illinois, Chicago.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

Introduction

1. From Aristotle to Adam Smith

1. Two Kinds of Justice

2. The Right of Necessity

3. Property Rights

4. Communal Experiments and Utopian Writings

5. Poor Laws

2. The Eighteenth Century

1. Citizen Equality: Rousseau

2. Changing Our Picture of the Poor: Smith

3. The Equal Worth of Human Beings: Kant

4. To the Vendôme Palais de Justice: Babeuf

3. From Babeuf to Rawls

1. Reaction

2. Positivists

3. Marx

4. Utilitarians

5. Rawls

6. After Rawls

Epilogue

Notes

Bibliography

Index

What People are Saying About This

Samuel Fleishacker's engaging and very readable Short History of Distributive Justice should be an essential reference for all social workers who use the concept of social justice...This is a marvelous book which should be read by all social workers.

Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare

Samuel Fleishacker's engaging and very readable Short History of Distributive Justice should be an essential reference for all social workers who use the concept of social justice...This is a marvelous book which should be read by all social workers.

Ross Harrison

This is a succinct, coherent, and wide-ranging history of distributive justice that will be a boon for teachers and students. Written with a light touch, it will provoke discussion and thought, raising the possibility of seeing things differently. A fine contribution.
— Ross Harrison, University of Cambridge and author of Hobbes, Locke, and Confusion's Masterpiece

Stephen Darwall

Fleischacker provides a fascinating account of the development of our contemporary notion of distributive justice. This is an excellent book that fills a real need.
— Stephen Darwall, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and author of Welfare and Rational Care

Daniel Brudney

This will be an important book. Its thesis is highly original and interesting, it displays impressive erudition in making its argument, the argument itself is cogently made, and all this is done in a remarkably modest amount of space.
— Daniel Brudney, University of Chicago and author of Marx's Attempt to Leave Philosophy

Editorial Reviews

A Short History of Distributive Justice is marked by extensive research, careful thought, and clear exposition.

British Journal for the History of Philosophy - D. D. Raphael

Engaging and very readable… This is a marvelous book which should be read by all social workers. By causing social workers to consider the complex issues the concept of social justice raises, Fleischacker’s book may facilitate a more nuanced and sophisticated understanding of what has become a central concept in the field.

Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare

Fleischacker provides a fascinating account of the development of our contemporary notion of distributive justice. This is an excellent book that fills a real need.

Stephen Darwall

Fleischacker takes on the conventional history of distributive justice, more commonly called ‘social justice’ or ‘economic justice.’ Who first advocated giving material goods to the poor purely on the basis of need? Some histories attribute this line of thinking to figures as far back as Plato or Aristotle; others claim to find it in Rousseau. But Fleischacker convincingly demonstrates that the true origin of this idea is far more recent than we might think—and that the first great thinker to advocate it was none other than that tree-hugging liberal Adam Smith. Although the topic may seem dauntingly academic, the author has a readable, conversational style; the work of philosophers as diverse as Cicero, Hume, and Kant is discussed with energy, style, and wit.

Steve Weinbergn Lawyer

This will be an important book. Its thesis is highly original and interesting, it displays impressive erudition in making its argument, the argument itself is cogently made, and all this is done in a remarkably modest amount of space.

Daniel Brudney

This is a succinct, coherent, and wide-ranging history of distributive justice that will be a boon for teachers and students. Written with a light touch, it will provoke discussion and thought, raising the possibility of seeing things differently. A fine contribution.

Ross Harrison

Engaging and very readable... This is a marvelous book which should be read by all social workers. By causing social workers to consider the complex issues the concept of social justice raises, Fleischacker's book may facilitate a more nuanced and sophisticated understanding of what has become a central concept in the field.-- "Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare" (3/1/2004 12:00:00 AM)

Fleischacker provides a fascinating account of the development of our contemporary notion of distributive justice. This is an excellent book that fills a real need.--Stephen Darwall, University of Michigan, author of Welfare and Rational Care

Fleischacker takes on the conventional history of distributive justice, more commonly called 'social justice' or 'economic justice.' Who first advocated giving material goods to the poor purely on the basis of need? Some histories attribute this line of thinking to figures as far back as Plato or Aristotle; others claim to find it in Rousseau. But Fleischacker convincingly demonstrates that the true origin of this idea is far more recent than we might think--and that the first great thinker to advocate it was none other than that tree-hugging liberal Adam Smith. Although the topic may seem dauntingly academic, the author has a readable, conversational style; the work of philosophers as diverse as Cicero, Hume, and Kant is discussed with energy, style, and wit.--Steve Weinberg "American Lawyer" (7/1/2004 12:00:00 AM)

A Short History of Distributive Justice is marked by extensive research, careful thought, and clear exposition.--D. D. Raphael "British Journal for the History of Philosophy"

This is a succinct, coherent, and wide-ranging history of distributive justice that will be a boon for teachers and students. Written with a light touch, it will provoke discussion and thought, raising the possibility of seeing things differently. A fine contribution.--Ross Harrison, University of Cambridge, author of Hobbes, Locke, and Confusion's Masterpiece

This will be an important book. Its thesis is highly original and interesting, it displays impressive erudition in making its argument, the argument itself is cogently made, and all this is done in a remarkably modest amount of space.--Daniel Brudney, University of Chicago, author of Marx's Attempt to Leave Philosophy

From the Publisher

Fleischacker takes on the conventional history of distributive justice, more commonly called ‘social justice’ or ‘economic justice.’ Who first advocated giving material goods to the poor purely on the basis of need? Some histories attribute this line of thinking to figures as far back as Plato or Aristotle; others claim to find it in Rousseau. But Fleischacker convincingly demonstrates that the true origin of this idea is far more recent than we might think—and that the first great thinker to advocate it was none other than that tree-hugging liberal Adam Smith. Although the topic may seem dauntingly academic, the author has a readable, conversational style; the work of philosophers as diverse as Cicero, Hume, and Kant is discussed with energy, style, and wit.

The American Lawyer - Steve Weinberg

A Short History of Distributive Justice is marked by extensive research, careful thought, and clear exposition.
— D. D. Raphael

British Journal for the History of Philosophy

Fleischacker takes on the conventional history of distributive justice, more commonly called 'social justice' or 'economic justice.' Who first advocated giving material goods to the poor purely on the basis of need? Some histories attribute this line of thinking to figures as far back as Plato or Aristotle; others claim to find it in Rousseau. But Fleischacker convincingly demonstrates that the true origin of this idea is far more recent than we might think--and that the first great thinker to advocate it was none other than that tree-hugging liberal Adam Smith. Although the topic may seem dauntingly academic, the author has a readable, conversational style; the work of philosophers as diverse as Cicero, Hume, and Kant is discussed with energy, style, and wit.
— Steve Weinberg

The American Lawyer

Samuel Fleishacker's engaging and very readable Short History of Distributive Justice should be an essential reference for all social workers who use the concept of social justice...This is a marvelous book which should be read by all social workers.

Journal Of Sociology And Social Welfare