Political Philosophy, Empathy and Political Justice

ISBN-13: 9781138017757 / Angielski / Twarda / 2015 / 254 str.

Matthew Edge

Opis

In this work, Matt Edge offers an innovative approach to political philosophy. He invites the reader to consider the question of political justice from an empathic perspective - if you were asked to construct a theory of justice acceptable to members of a community you were not yourself a part of, how would you succeed in making your proposal acceptable? What tools would you rely on to construct such a theory, and why? Equally, what would make anyone qualified to write such a theory? Using empathy, this remarkable, natural, tool human beings possess for making moral and ethical decisions, and, thereby, placing yourself as someone on the receiving end of the very theory of justice you yourself are constructing, what would you come up with? What set of alterable human structures and systems would you deem acceptable, were you to find yourself in the position of a citizen living under such structures? Political Philosophy, Empathy and Political Justice offers a unique and compelling account of the type of free system required to pass an empathic examination at the heart of these, and related, questions, matters which define all human eras, in the constant search for political and social justice on our diverse planet.

Spis treści

Introduction  1. Empathy and Political Philosophy  2. Empathy  3. The Empathy Test  4. Radical Concern: Political Philosophy on Foot  5. Freedom and Empathy  6. A Theory of Freedom  Conclusion

O autorze

Matt Edge is an independent researcher. His current research interests are the relationship between Rawls-style theories of justice and justice on the 'front line' of professional practice, in social work, policing and community care, theories of freedom, participatory democracy, psychological trauma, the philosophy of Davidson and Quine, and the theory and practice of empathy.