Justice and Democracy: Essays for Brian Barry

Justice and democracy have alternated as dominant themes in political philosophy over the last fifty years. Since its revival in the middle of the twentieth century, political philosophy has focused on first one and then the other of these two themes. Rarely, however, has it succeeded in holding them in joint focus. This volume brings together leading authors who consider the relationship between democracy and justice in a set of specially written chapters. The intrinsic justness of democracy is challenged, the relationship between justice, democracy and impartiality queried and the relationship between justice, democracy and the common good examined. Further chapters explore the problem of social exclusion and issues surrounding sub-national groups in the context of democracy and justice. Authors include Keith Dowding, Richard Arneson, Norman Schofield, Albert Weale, Robert E. Goodin, Jon Elster, David Miller, Phillip Pettit, Julian LeGrand and Russell Hardin.

• Contains specially commissioned chapters which consider the relationship between justice and democracy • Contributors are all leading authors from around the world • Ideal for political scientists, political theorists, social and political philosophers and their students

Contents

1. Introduction: between justice and democracy Keith Dowding, Robert E. Goodin and Carole Pateman; 2. Are democratic and just institutions the same? Keith Dowding; 3. Democracy is not intrinsically just Richard Arneson; 4. ‘The probability of a fit choice’: US political history and voting theory Norman Schofield; 5. Contractarian theory, deliberative democracy and general agreement Albert Weale; 6. Democracy, justice and impartiality Robert E. Goodin; 7 Mimicking impartiality Jon Elster; 8. Justice, democracy and public goods David Miller; 9. The common good Philip Pettit; 10. Individual choice and social exclusion Julian LeGrand; 11. Sub-national groups and globalization Russell Hardin.

Review

'… provides a grounded basis for the opening debate about the difficulty of promoting democracy … What this collection of essays does, and does well, is to ask the serious questions about how democracy and democratic institutions effect and promote concepts of justice. … the questions raised in the essays are important because they require the reader to address in a careful and considerate way what we should expect of democracy, and how, once we agree on those expectations, we should strive to achieve them.'

– H-Democracy