阿玛蒂亚·森论基本能力平等

Amartya Sen on the Equality of Basic Capabilities

在当代政治哲学关于平等的种种主张中,阿玛蒂亚·森提出的基本能力平等算得上独具一格。首先森批评了其他几种典型的平等主张,认为它们都没能解决人的多样性的问题。换句话说,它们没有对"什么的平等"问题给出合理的回答。而森所提出的能力概念把人的多样性恰当地考虑进来了,所以森的基本能力平等的主张,把基本能力作为平等的核心变量,避免了其他平等主张会面临的困难。此外,森的能力概念本身具有非常丰富的内容,最关键的是它充分考虑到人的自由与能动性,从而使得它成为一个衡量人们生活质量的核心概念。最后,森的基本能力平等主张并不像运气平等主义那样过分强调责任概念。

Amartya Sen＇ s view on the equality of basic capabilities is different from others in contemporary schools of political philosophy. First, Sen criticizes that some other views fail to take the diversity of human beings into consideration, in other words, they can not give a reasonable answer to the question of equality of what. The diversity of human beings is so important in his concept of capability that the basic capabilities has become the focal variables in Sen＇ s theory, avoiding the same difficulties that other theories face. Second, his concept of capability contains rich contents, emphasizing human being＇ s freedom and iniative, being a core concept to measure the quality of life. Last, his view on the equality of basic capabilities does not attach too much importance to the concept of responsibility as luck egalitarianism.