Is Liberalism the Best of All Possible Worlds?

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how the conception of justice that liberalism is based on is that all social primary goods -- liberty and opportunity, income and wealth, and the bases of self-respect -- are to be distributed equally unless an unequal distribution of any or all of these goods is to the advantage of the least favored. The writer shows how Rawls breaks this general conception down into two principles: The first principle states that everyone has equal rights and everyone should be able to enjoy these rights as much as possible, without infringing on anyone else's rights. The second principle, called the difference principle, states that inequality should have two restrictions- inequalities have to be beneficial to the least advantaged of society, and inequalities are acceptable only if there is equal opportunity to achieve a higher status. This paper is a critical examination of Liberal Political theory, set forth by Rawls. The paper examines criticism voiced by libertarians, communitarians, and feminists.

From the Paper:

"The search for the best of all possible worlds is extremely complicated. How can we decide what is the best world? What features would that world have, and why? Do these features concur with our intuitions about what's right? Are certain standards of equality and justice met? Would most people thrive in this world? Is our view on what is best impartial? In Steve Lukes' novel, Professor Caritat attempts to attain an impartial view of the world by asking, in which world would anyone be happy? In order to answer the question, Caritat tries to imagine the best possible world for an unborn embryo. This hypothetical embryo has no idea of its class, sex, race, ethnicity, religion, health, gender, life prospects, etc. Therefore, the embryo has no idea what sort of position it will occupy in society once it is born. Because the embryo has no identity, Caritat must examine every sector of society to see how everyone is treated, and to what extent everyone is allowed to live a good life. Using this criterion, Caritat concludes that none of the worlds that he visits are the ideal place for the embryo. He describes what he believes to be the best of all possible worlds and that description sounds a lot like a world based on liberal ideals. In this world people have the freedom to choose from all types of lifestyles worth living. Besides rule of law, civil peace and order, this society ensures that everyone has access to basic resources, and that the least advantaged are as well off as possible."

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