John Rawls's Justice as Fairness: Ethical Principles and Moral Conduct

Ethics and Moral Conduct: Foundations of Morality

Ethics is a philosophical discipline that examines morality and seeks to provide its foundation. Moral conduct is behavior guided by rules and moral values, stemming from an understanding of norms and values that are conscientiously undertaken.

We conclude that a prerequisite for moral behavior is freedom. When behavior is contrary to laws, rigid nature, or uncontrollable instincts, it cannot be judged morally. Moral behavior, as it is freely chosen, can be judged or valued by others as good or bad. The difference is that in the latter case, we consider that the individual had the freedom to choose and decide.

Rawls's Theory of Justice: Justice as Fairness

Justice functions as a fundamental ethical and political value. The core problem is to find basic principles of justice that can be accepted by all. Can we find such principles that can be adopted universally? It is difficult because we cannot ignore the influence of our personal interests.

Rawls believes that to find these basic principles of justice, one must begin from a hypothesized situation he calls the original position.

The Original Position: Impartiality and the Veil of Ignorance

Imagine a group of human beings responsible for establishing the principles of justice, covered by a veil of ignorance. This means they lack awareness of what might target their personal interests; i.e., these individuals are fully impartial or neutral. These individuals would be in the situation Rawls calls the original position.

Justice as Fairness: Core Principles

Suppose such a group of individuals is asked to develop the basic principles of justice. Since they do not know their sex, social status, or other personal attributes, they will look for those principles which enable them to obtain the maximum benefit, regardless of their future social standing. These principles are:

• Individuals have equal freedom and rights.
• The distribution of wealth in that society will adhere to these conditions:
  • Economic inequalities are only permitted if this inequality is more beneficial to all than equality.
  • Individuals will access various social positions or roles under equitable conditions.

These two principles ensure the maximum possible benefits for all. From this, Rawls defines justice as a situation in which social goods are to be distributed equally unless an unequal distribution benefits everyone.