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Full Idea
What makes a system egalitarian is the priority it gives to the claims of those whose overall life prospects put them at the bottom.
Gist of Idea
An egalitarian system must give priority to those with the worst prospects in life
Source
Thomas Nagel (Equality [1977], §6)
Book Ref
Nagel,Thomas: 'Mortal Questions' [CUP 1981], p.118
| 3273 | Equality nowadays is seen as political, social, legal and economic [Nagel] |
| 3275 | Equality was once opposed to aristocracy, but now it opposes public utility and individual rights [Nagel] |
| 3274 | Equality can either be defended as good for society, or as good for individual rights [Nagel] |
| 3276 | A morality of rights is very minimal, leaving a lot of human life without restrictions or duties [Nagel] |
| 3277 | In judging disputes, should we use one standard, or those of each individual? [Nagel] |
| 3278 | An egalitarian system must give priority to those with the worst prospects in life [Nagel] |
| 3281 | The ideal of acceptability to each individual underlies the appeal to equality [Nagel] |
| 3282 | The general form of moral reasoning is putting yourself in other people's shoes [Nagel] |