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Why Social Justice Matters
In the past twenty years, social injustice has increased enormously in Britain and the United States, regardless of the party in power. At the same time, the idea of social justice itself has been subverted, as the mantras of personal responsibility and equal opportunity have been employed as an excuse for doing nothing about the enrichment of the few at the expense of the many and for making ever harsher demands on the poor and vulnerable.
With grace and wit, Brian Barry exposes the shoddy logic and distortion of reality that underpins this ideology. Once we understand the role of the social structure in limiting options, we have to recognize that really putting into practice ideas such as equal opportunity and personal responsibility would require a fundamental transformation of almost all existing institutions. Barry argues that only if inequalities of wealth and income are kept within a narrow range can equal prospects for education, health and autonomy be realized. He proposes a number of policies to achieve a more equal society and argues that they are economically feasible. But are they politically possible?
The apparent stability of the status quo is delusory, he radical changes in our way of life are unavoidable. Whether these changes are for better or for worse depends partly on the availability of a coherent set of principles and a programme flowing from them that is capable of mobilizing the growing discontent with business as usual. That is, ultimately, why social justice matters.
With grace and wit, Brian Barry exposes the shoddy logic and distortion of reality that underpins this ideology. Once we understand the role of the social structure in limiting options, we have to recognize that really putting into practice ideas such as equal opportunity and personal responsibility would require a fundamental transformation of almost all existing institutions. Barry argues that only if inequalities of wealth and income are kept within a narrow range can equal prospects for education, health and autonomy be realized. He proposes a number of policies to achieve a more equal society and argues that they are economically feasible. But are they politically possible?
The apparent stability of the status quo is delusory, he radical changes in our way of life are unavoidable. Whether these changes are for better or for worse depends partly on the availability of a coherent set of principles and a programme flowing from them that is capable of mobilizing the growing discontent with business as usual. That is, ultimately, why social justice matters.
336 pages, Paperback
First published February 28, 2005
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139 people want to read
About the author
Brian M. Barry
22 books16 followersBrian Barry [Fellow of the British Academy] was a moral and political philosopher. He was educated at the Queen's College, Oxford, obtaining the degrees of B.A. and D.Phil under the direction of H. L. A. Hart.
Along with David Braybrooke, Richard E. Flathman, Felix Oppenheim, and Abraham Kaplan, he is widely credited with having fused analytic philosophy and political science.[citation needed] Barry also fused political theory and social choice theory and was a persistent critic of public choice theory.
During his early career, Barry held teaching posts at the University of Birmingham, Keele University and the University of Southampton. In 1965 he was appointed a teaching fellow at University College, and then Nuffield College. In 1969 he became a professor at Essex University.
Barry was Lieber Professor Emeritus of Political Philosophy at Columbia University and Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the London School of Economics. He was awarded the Johan Skytte Prize in Political Science in 2001. Barry also taught at the University of Chicago, in the departments of philosophy and political science. During this time he edited the journal Ethics, helping raise its publication standards. Under his editorship, it became perhaps the leading journal for moral and political philosophy.
He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1978. Barry was a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association, and was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of York in 2006.
Selected publications
* Why Social Justice Matters (Polity 2005)
* Culture & Equality: An Egalitarian Critique of Multiculturalism (2001)
* Justice as Impartiality (1995)
* Theories of Justice (Berkeley, 1989)
* Democracy, Power, and Justice: Essays in Political Theory (Oxford, 1989)
* The Liberal Theory of Justice (1973)
* Sociologists, Economists and Democracy (1970)
* Political Argument (1965, Reissue 1990)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Barry
Along with David Braybrooke, Richard E. Flathman, Felix Oppenheim, and Abraham Kaplan, he is widely credited with having fused analytic philosophy and political science.[citation needed] Barry also fused political theory and social choice theory and was a persistent critic of public choice theory.
During his early career, Barry held teaching posts at the University of Birmingham, Keele University and the University of Southampton. In 1965 he was appointed a teaching fellow at University College, and then Nuffield College. In 1969 he became a professor at Essex University.
Barry was Lieber Professor Emeritus of Political Philosophy at Columbia University and Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the London School of Economics. He was awarded the Johan Skytte Prize in Political Science in 2001. Barry also taught at the University of Chicago, in the departments of philosophy and political science. During this time he edited the journal Ethics, helping raise its publication standards. Under his editorship, it became perhaps the leading journal for moral and political philosophy.
He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1978. Barry was a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association, and was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of York in 2006.
Selected publications
* Why Social Justice Matters (Polity 2005)
* Culture & Equality: An Egalitarian Critique of Multiculturalism (2001)
* Justice as Impartiality (1995)
* Theories of Justice (Berkeley, 1989)
* Democracy, Power, and Justice: Essays in Political Theory (Oxford, 1989)
* The Liberal Theory of Justice (1973)
* Sociologists, Economists and Democracy (1970)
* Political Argument (1965, Reissue 1990)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Barry
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May 24, 2025it was a useful analysis of neo liberalism that started back in 1997 with Tony Blair
January 1, 2017
I've read this twice, mostly for fun. The "fun" aspect is crucial as Barry is (was) an incredibly approachable writer and the book is packed full of entertaining insights and anecdotes. On the down side, both in terms of Barry's oeuvre and the field itself, the book is hardly the most substantive account of social justice theory; due in no small part because of Barry's attempt to make the text so accessible. As a result, this book is probably a text best suited for the layman or to be used as an introduction to social justice theory.
One major note: Barry is reliant on ideological considerations for essentially every part of the book (Ch. 17 is entirely devoted to the topic, in fact). And the text likely won't hold much water with those fervently opposed to Barry's openly "liberal" sentiments or those uninterested in ideology. The benefit of his overt ideological armature, however, is that it allows for a useful comparative point between other popular social justice writers that Barry had, at one point or another, criticized - Rawls and Walzer immediately come to mind.
Ultimately, this is a delightful book and a very easy read (certainly when compared to a lot of social justice literature). Despite Barry's economic propositions, this should not be seen as a serious approach to political economics - it is a firmly "liberal" approach to social justice by way of a series of arguments on socio-economic inequality and resource redistribution. But regardless of its ideological or methodological commitments; the text is worth the read and is a fitting work for a thinker who busied himself with making social justice, both in theory and in practice, equally accessible to everyone.
One major note: Barry is reliant on ideological considerations for essentially every part of the book (Ch. 17 is entirely devoted to the topic, in fact). And the text likely won't hold much water with those fervently opposed to Barry's openly "liberal" sentiments or those uninterested in ideology. The benefit of his overt ideological armature, however, is that it allows for a useful comparative point between other popular social justice writers that Barry had, at one point or another, criticized - Rawls and Walzer immediately come to mind.
Ultimately, this is a delightful book and a very easy read (certainly when compared to a lot of social justice literature). Despite Barry's economic propositions, this should not be seen as a serious approach to political economics - it is a firmly "liberal" approach to social justice by way of a series of arguments on socio-economic inequality and resource redistribution. But regardless of its ideological or methodological commitments; the text is worth the read and is a fitting work for a thinker who busied himself with making social justice, both in theory and in practice, equally accessible to everyone.
February 9, 2010
"...chronic stress can cause high blood pressure. This was something I discovered for myself when I spent four years near the University of Chicago in a constant (and justifiable) state of apprehension about the risk of violence from people who, if they did not accost you in the street, were quite capable of smashing your door down and helping themselves after immobilizing you."
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews