The "Original Position" as Public Performance: Liberalism, Pluralism, and Asceticism
John Rawls' well-known device of representation (his terminology) that he names the "original position" is put into play by the veil of ignorance. This imaginative device, found in both his early and late works, is often dismissed because it is misunderstood as an exercise in moral ge...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
MDPI
[2019]
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In: |
Religions
Year: 2019, Volume: 10, Issue: 8, Pages: 1-12 |
Further subjects: | B
veil of ignorance
B original position B public dialogue B Asceticism B Rawls |
Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (Resolving-System) Volltext (doi) |
Summary: | John Rawls' well-known device of representation (his terminology) that he names the "original position" is put into play by the veil of ignorance. This imaginative device, found in both his early and late works, is often dismissed because it is misunderstood as an exercise in moral geometry. This essay discusses in more detail the subjective mechanics of the original position; while sympathetic of Rawls' application of the veil of ignorance, I distinguish between a thick and thin veil, whereby I promote the latter. The final section makes a connection between the simulation of the original position and the religious practice of asceticism. |
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ISSN: | 2077-1444 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Religions
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.3390/rel10080462 |