Anthropological foundations of John Rawls' political theory

Abstract

The analysis of Rawls’ anthropological model, underlying his theory of justice, reveals its complex basis: on one hand, it is an attempt to attach broader and deeper Kantian philosophical foundations to “ratonal egoist” of classical utilitarianism (idea of autonomy, ability of self-determination through moral law); on the other hand, the notion of “life plan”, emphasizing rationality of human interests and actions and opening a possibility for happiness, connects Rawls’ theory to Aristotle’s virtue ethics and to contemporary communitarianism.

Keywords

• anthropological model
• «justice as fairness»
• rationality
• individualism
• «life plan»
• Rawls
• Kant
• Aristotle.