On Justification: Economies of Worth

by Luc Boltanski, Laurent Thévenot, Catherine Porter (Translator)

A vital and underappreciated dimension of social interaction is the way individuals justify their actions to others, instinctively drawing on their experience to appeal to principles they hope will command respect. Individuals, however, often misread situations, and many disagreements can be explained by people appealing, knowingly and unknowingly, to different principles. On Justification is the first English translation of Luc Boltanski and Laurent Thévenot’s ambitious theoretical examination of these phenomena, a book that has already had a huge impact on French sociology and is likely to have a similar influence in the English-speaking world.

In this foundational work of post-Bourdieu sociology, the authors examine a wide range of situations where people justify their actions. The authors argue that justifications fall into six main logics exemplified by six authors: civic (Rousseau), market (Adam Smith), industrial (Saint-Simon), domestic (Bossuet), inspiration (Augustine), and fame (Hobbes). The authors show how these justifications conflict, as people compete to legitimize their views of a situation.

On Justification is likely to spark important debates across the social sciences.

Genres: Sociology, Philosophy, Social Science, Economics, Politics, Academic

400 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 1991

About the author

Luc Boltanski is a French sociologist, Professor at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences, Paris, and founder of the Groupe de Sociologie Politique et Morale, known as the leading figure in the new "pragmatic" school of French sociology.

Reviews

[Sergey Steblyov · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is important because of a bunch of things. Here is one of the most important: the book shows a completely novel relation between social sciences (including economics) and political philosophy. Social sciences claim to explain behavior. Philosophy often prescribes behavior, as well as offers a picture of a certain order in society. How can these two ideas make sense at the same time? Boltanski and Thevenot's work, of which this book was only a beginning, gives a very elaborate and important answer.

It is a challenging read (sometimes, too much of a challenging read), however. Hence 4 stars.

[Ben O'loughlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The authors attempt to identify connections between political philosophies and the way people justify themselves and their decisions in work situations. In particular they analyse the presence of political philosophies in work manuals and professional self-improvement books. Contains some interesting propositions about the games we play when making justifications, but the presentation is repetitive and awkward (or poorly translated perhaps). Where is the great work on political 'lay theories' in everyday situations? But I'd be interested in reading their next book The Spirit of Capitalism.

[Karim Malak · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that-oddly enough-one can relate to as much as it is eye-openning; making it as illuminating as it is relatable. It tackles how different worlds intersect and justify their encroachments on society using higher common good principles.

[Sanni]

Saatanan sosiologit. En ole ihan vakuuttunut siitä, että kaiken tarvitsee oikeasti ilmaista näin vaikeasti. Sosiologisen taloustieteen merkkiteos yhtä kaikki.