School
Egalitarianism
Overview
Egalitarianism (from French égal 'equal'; also equalitarianism) is a school of thought within political philosophy that builds on the concept of social equality, prioritizing it for all people. Egalitarian doctrines are generally characterized by the idea that all humans are equal in fundamental worth or moral status. As such, all people should be accorded equal rights and treatment under the law. Egalitarian doctrines have been important in many modern political philosophies and social movements, including the Enlightenment, classical liberalism, libertarianism, feminism, civil rights, and international human rights. Egalitarianism is a major principle of both classical liberalism with its equality of rights, and redistributive left-wing politics with its stress on equality of outcome.
One key aspect of egalitarianism is its emphasis on equal opportunities for all individuals, regardless of their background or circumstances. This means ensuring that everyone has access to the same resources, education, and opportunities to succeed in life. By promoting equal opportunities, egalitarianism aims to level the playing field and reduce disparities that result from social inequalities.
Overview adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; see the article history for authors).
Possible passages
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It is also to be considered, that all the education which women receive from society inculcates on them the feeling that the individuals connected with them are the only ones to whom they owe any duty--the only ones whose interest they are called upon to care for; while, as far as education is concerned, they are left strangers even to the elementary ideas which are presupposed in any intelligent regard for larger…
John Stuart Mill, The Subjection of Women
States what Egalitarianism is; the author is tied to Egalitarianism in the knowledge graph.
(2) If two magnitudes are equal to a third they are equal to one another; this statement is, as Hegel has shown, a conclusion, upon the correctness of which all logic depends, and which is demonstrated therefore outside of pure mathematics. The remaining axioms with regard to equality and inequality are merely logical extensions of this conclusion. Such barren statements are not enticing either in mathematics or…
Friedrich Engels, Landmarks of Scientific Socialism
States what Egalitarianism is; the author is tied to Egalitarianism in the knowledge graph.
For popular use this definition is amply sufficient, but it still falls short of the complete accuracy required for the purposes of the philosopher. Political Economy does not treat of the production and distribution of wealth in all states of mankind, but only in what is termed the social state; nor so far as they depend upon the laws of human nature, but only so far as they depend upon a certain portion of those…
John Stuart Mill, Essays on some unsettled Questions of Political Economy
States what Egalitarianism is; the author is tied to Egalitarianism in the knowledge graph.
Philosophers who discussed Egalitarianism
- John Rawls
- William Godwin
- John Stuart Mill
- Claude Adrien Helvétius
- Murray Rothbard
- Leo Strauss
- Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
- Ronald Dworkin
- Theodor W. Adorno
- Richard Clyde Taylor
- The Buddha
- Martha Nussbaum
- Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
- G. A. Cohen
- Paul Tillich
- Arthur Schopenhauer
- Michael Walzer
- Benedetto Croce
- John Zerzan
- Peter Vallentyne
- Sylvain Maréchal
- Nick Land
- Michael Otsuka
- Arturo Reghini
Related ideas
- Feminism
- French Revolution
- Anarchism
- Distributive justice
- Human rights
- Hierarchy
- Women's rights
- Elitism
- Individualism
- John Locke
- Karl Marx
- Libertarian socialism
- Muhammad
- Marxism
- Autonomy
- Liberalism
- University of Chicago Press
- Martin Luther King Jr.
- Historical Vedic religion
- Murray Rothbard
- Surplus product
- School of thought
- Progressivism
- Socialism
Place in the tradition
Part of Agriculturalism.