Prioritarianism by Richard J Arneson

Prioritarianism by Richard J Arneson

Prioritarianism holds that improvements in someone's life (gains in well-being) are morally more valuable, the worse off the person would otherwise be. The doctrine is impartial, holding that a gain in one person's life counts exactly the same as an identical gain in the life of anyone equally well off. If we have some duty of beneficence to make the world better, prioritarianism specifies the content of the duty. Unlike the utilitarian, the prioritarian holds that we should not only seek to increase human well-being, but also distribute it fairly across persons, by tilting in favor of the worse off. A variant version adds that we should also give priority to the morally deserving - to saints over scoundrels. The view is a standard for right choice of individual actions and public policies, offering a distinctive alternative to utilitarianism (maximize total well-being), sufficiency (make everyone's condition good enough) and egalitarianism (make everyone's condition the same).

Steven Wall is assistant professor of philosophy at Kansas State University. He is the author of Liberalism, Perfectionism, and Restraint. George Klosko is professor of government and foreign affairs at the University of Virginia. His books include The Principle of Fairness and Political Obligation and Democratic Procedures and Liberal Consensus.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781108730693
ISBN 10	1108730698
Title	Prioritarianism
Author	Richard J Arneson
Series	Elements In Ethics
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Cambridge University Press
Year published	2022-06-02
Number of pages	75
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.