民主的平等:从基本善的视角看

Democratic Equality: From the Perspective of the Primary Good

当代平等主义最重要的代表是罗尔斯。对于这种平等主义,罗尔斯本人把它称为"民主的平等"。但是,从"什么的平等"的观点看,应该把它称为"基本善的平等"。我们对这种平等观的讨论包含三个问题:首先,分析基本善观念本身,解释其具体含义以及与正义原则的关系;其次,揭示基本善观念存在的一些困难,其中包括两个主要问题,第一个涉及基本善的客观性,第二个是基本善的性质;最后,探讨平等主义中的个人责任问题,从基本善的视角来看,民主的平等在这个方面存在明显的缺点。

John Rawls is the most important representative of contemporary egalitarians, and he calls his theory of egalitarianism ＂democratic equality＂. Perceived from the view of ＂ equality of what＂, Rawls＇ theory should be called ＂ equality of the primary good ＂. We will discuss this conception of equality from three aspects. First, we will analyze the conception of the primary good to explain its specific meaning and its relation to the principle of justice. Secondly, we will try to reveal several defects in the conception of the primary good, including two major issues, the first issue being the objectivity of primary good, and the second the nature of primary good. Finally, we will explore the problem of individual responsibility in the theory of egalitarianism; from the view of the primary good, there are obvious weaknesses related to democratic equality.