John Rawls His Life and Theory of Justice [Paperback]

John Rawls was one of the most important political philosophers of our time, and promises to be an enduring figure over the coming decades. HisTheory of Justice(1971) has had a profound impact across philosophy, politics, law, and economics. Nonetheless Rawlsian theory is not easy to understand, particularly for beginners, and his writing can be dense and forbidding. Thomas Pogge's short introduction (originally published in German) gives a thorough and concise presentation of the main outlines of Rawls's theory, introduces biographical information when necessary, and draws links between the Rawlsian enterprise and other important positions in moral and political philosophy.

Preface
1.Biography
1.1. Family and Schooling
1.2. College and War
1.3. Academic Career
1.4. The Turbulent Decade 1962-1971
1.5. AfterA Theory of Justice
1.6. The Meaning of Rawls's Project
2.The Focus on the Basic Structure
2.1. The Origin of the Theory
2.2. The Complexity of Modern Sciences
2.3. The Idea of an Overlapping Consensus
2.4. The Scope of the Theory
3.A Top-Tier Criterion of Justice
3.1. Purely Recipient-Oriented Criteria of Justice
3.2. The Anonymity Condition
3.3. Fundamental Interests versus Happiness
4.The Basic Idea:Justice as Fairness
4.1. The Original Position
4.2. Maximin versus Average
4.3. Primary Goods
4.4. The Lexical Priority of the Basic Liberties
5.The First Principle of Justice
5.1. The Structure of a Basic Right
5.2. Formulating the Required Scheme of Basic Rights and Liberties
5.3. The Fair Value of the Basic Political Liberties
5.4. Permissible Reductions of Basic Liberties
5.5. Impermissible Reductions of Basic Liberties
6.The Second Principle of Justice
6.1. The Difference Principle in First AlX