The Liberal State & the Politics of Virtue
At the start of the new millennium there has been
a growing awareness that traditional political institutions and
ideologies do not correspond to the demands and aspirations held
by many individuals and groups. Ideals and interests previously
without muchy impact on the political debate have gained access
to the public arena. These new claims include demands for recognition
of homosexuals and their rights, affirmation of the particularities
of indigenous peoples, sensitivity to the cultures and languages
of immigrants, respect for children and their needs, solidarity
with people of the developing countries and their fight for independence,
care for nature, animals, attention to the social status of women,
and so on. As a consequence, many governments now regulate and support
many different conceptions of the good life and its virtues.
In this volume, schematically divided into two
parts, Ludvig Beckman challenges the common view that support
for the good life, the politics of virtue, is in conflict with liberal
principles. In clear, analytical language he addresses the question
of what a state should do. Chapter 1 attempts to specify
the meaning of "liberalism", chapter 2 discusses
the meaning of tolerance and makes more specific the notion of "virtue";
chapters 3 and 4 assess ethical and political liberalism
as exemplified by the writings of Ronald Dworkin and John Rawls.
In part two, chapter 5 discusses the clash between norms
of justice and conceptions of virtue in the family; chapter 6
explores the meaning of the idea of an ethically neutral state;
chapter 7 explores three different arguments for the neutral
state as found in the work of Ronald Dworkin: chapter 8 presents
an analysis of the idea of the neutral state with the theory of
John Rawls put under scrutiny; chapter 9 explains why the
attempt to justify the neutral state by referring to modified skepticism
fails and proposes a distinction between being skeptical and being
critical.
Participating in the current debate on communitarianism,
The Liberal state and the Policits of Virtue will be particularly
interesting to people engaged in the public debate on ethics, morality
and the state. It will also be of interest to teachers and researchers
in the fields of politics and philosophy.
Contents
Acknowledgments
1. Liberalism and Virtue: The Beginning
of an Argument
2. Virtue in Liberal Thought: A Primer
3. The Liberal Way of Life: Dworkin on Virtue
4. The Liberal Citizen: Rawls on Virtue
5. Rights and Virtues: In Conflict?
6. Dimensions of Neutrality: The Neutral State as an
Ideal
7. Neutral Aims: Dworkin and the Liberal State
8. Neutral Reasons: The Liberal State Justified
9. Liberalism and Dogmatism
10. Conclusions: The Liberal's Predicament
Bibliography
Index
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