Overview

Why does equality matter, as a social and political value, and what does it require? Relational egalitarians argue that it does not require that people receive equal distributive shares of some good, but that they relate as equals. Christian Schemmel here provides the first comprehensive development of a liberal conception of relational equality, one which understands relations of non-domination and egalitarian norms of social status as stringent demands of social justice. He first argues that expressing respect for the freedom and equality of individuals in social cooperation requires stringent protections against domination. Taking this as a starting point, he then develops a substantive, liberal conception of non-domination and argues that non-domination is a particularly important, but not the only, concern of social justice. From there, Schemmel develops an account of the wrongness of inegalitarian norms of social status which shows how status-induced foreclosure of important social opportunities is a social injustice in its own right, over and above the role of status inequality in enabling domination, and the threats it poses to individuals' self-respect. Finally, Schemmel articulates the implications of liberal relational egalitarianism for political, economic, and health justice, showing that it demands, in practice, far-reaching forms of equality in all three domains. With expert rigor and creativity, Justice and Egalitarian Relations brings together scholarship in a variety of related topics, from social justice and liberalism to distributive and social equality, republicanism, non-domination, and self-respect.

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9780190084240

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Schemmel's book offers a comprehensive, positive account of a form of liberal, relational egalitarianism-not only in the substantive questions that it addresses but also in its coverage of the existing literature on the topic, whether written by proponents or critics of relational egalitarianism...For my own part, I have learned a lot from reading it, and I am intrigued by the many questions for future research to which it gives rise. I feel confident that many other readers will have a similarly enriching experience. * Kasper Lippert-Rasmussen, University of Aarhus, Ethics *

Schemmel's book offers a comprehensive, positive account of a form of liberal, relational egalitarianism-not only in the substantive questions that it addresses but also in its coverage of the existing literature on the topic, whether written by proponents or critics of relational egalitarianism...For my own part, I have learned a lot from reading it, and I am intrigued by the many questions for future research to which it gives rise. I feel confident that many other readers will have a similarly enriching experience. * Kasper Lippert-Rasmussen, University of Aarhus, Ethics * Christian Schemmel's Justice and Egalitarian Relations is perhaps the most systematic attempt to develop a relational egalitarian theory of justice that approximates the sophistication found in rival distributive-egalitarian theories...Schemmel's discussion is rich and contains many resources for adaptation to these problems, and his distinctively expressive perspective may have interesting implications for debates about global justice if suitably developed. I learned much from Schemmel's book, and hope it will influence the philosophical discussion about how to build more equitable societies for years to come. * Daniel Sharp, Res Publica *

Author Information

Christian Schemmel, Senior Lecturer in Political Theory, University of Manchester Christian Schemmel is Senior Lecturer in Political Theory at the University of Manchester. His interests include theories of social justice and equality, liberalism and republicanism, global justice, and the intersection of political theory and political economy.

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