Equality

Importance of equality- according to dworkin, equality is a

sovereign virtue – most important of all values. It means equality
will Trump overall other virtues. Equality is the idea of modern
times as our consciousness is growing our understanding of
equality is expanding and becoming deeper. Equality is closely
associated to human progress human progress can be defined as
expansion of freedom and equality. Equality is linked to the
concept of dignity equality gives the sense of well-being.
According to John rawls, inequality is reemerging always.
Evolution of the concepts of equality
1. Equality before law( divine rights)
2. Equality of opportunity minus proportionate equality
3. Equality of outcomes minus absolute equality
Schools of thought on theory of equality
• Liberal
• Marxist
• Feminist
• Differentiated equality
• Communitarian
• Multi-culturalist
According to Dworkin- no other value has been under threat in
liberalism as the value of equality. Dworkin has highlighted that
equality is more fundamental than Liberty. Thus liberalism is not
against quality rather is based on equality. Liberty is Hollow in
the absence of equality. Hands like Isaiah Berlin, human dignity/
equality is considered core of liberalism.
Liberalism
1. Utilitarian
a) Equality of welfare
2. Egalitarian
a) Equality of resources
b) Equality of capabilities

1. Equality of welfare-
One of the core issues in Liberty theory is making people equal,
but in what sense?
a. Utilitarians- make people equal terms of welfare.
Welfare means pleasure. We give opportunity to people
wear their pleasure can be equal.
 Dworkin find it’s a logical – according to quality of welfare
people should be made equal in terms of welfare or happiness.
Dworkin find the principal in illogical.
Dworkin story
A person has a daughters. When is simple, believes in simple way
of life. Address lavish, has rich taste. To keep these people’s
pleasure equal, should give more to second daughter otherwise
she will not have equal pleasure. However, for Dworkin, the
above distribution does not appear to be logical.
If we look from libertarian prospective – capitalist have bigger
expenditure and must be left with more income in comparison to
workers.
2. Egalitarian- Dworkin theory
His theories equality of resources. He is a critic of nozick
theory and is inspired by rawls theory.
Nozick theory
Entitlement theory where States role is limited to regulation,
rectification, grievance redress but no role of distributive
justice.
He justified complete entitlement of men’s property. Like
classical liberals believing drunkard in the gutter, nozick also
believed that people should be held responsible for the choices
they make.
Dworkin theory
People should held responsible for the choices they make but
only the choices they made under chosen circumstances and
not under the inclusion circumstances. He also suggest that we
have to compensate only once. No need to compensate a person
again and again. Hence, Dworkin suggest the idea of just initial
distribution.
What is a just distribution?
Dworkin prescribed for that Envy test/ jealousy test
Dworkin has explained theory of justice in this book sovereign
virtue through a political fiction.
Suppose some people are travelling in a ship gets red, it can’t
move further. People see an island. They have no chance of
going back home. Hence, they decided to start their life on their
Island. The island is inhabited and full of resources. People
decide to start a life and build a just society to avoid war.
2A. Equality of resources
According to dworkin the best way to decide who should get
what is auction
Why auction is best?
Only through option, we come to understand the real values.
• Two kinds of auctions
1. Ambition sensitive - people should have choices to
decide which good they want
2. Endowment sensitive – option to be just, has to take
into account peoples endowments or natural capacities.
• For the purpose of auction, dworkin gives the idea of
equitable and not just equal distribution of clamshells
resources. Dworkin suggest initial distribution should be
fair. He also says that there is no need to compensate a
person again and again. Dworkin prescribe ENVY test to
find out whether initial distribution is fair or not. Dworkin
gives the concept of luck.
• Two kinds of luck by dworkin
1. Brute luck- man has no control or choice over it.
2. Option luck – man has choice/ control over it.
• Since there is no society, there is no social disadvantage,
hence he talks about natural disadvantage.
• Some people may have natural disadvantages or physical
disabilities. They would required to keep some clamshells
to offset the natural disadvantage. Hence, to make initial
distribution fair, free from envy, He suggest to give extra
clamshells as a compensation for brute luck.
• Once initial distribution is made fair, all will enter into the
ambition sensitive auction. Value of a good will be
decided on the basis of how many people want to possess
that good. Who will get that good will depend of the
highest bidder the amount of Clan sells a person is writing
to use determines how much that person wants the
particular good or the how much intensity one has for a
particular good point
• In the building, some will get and some will loose. Now it
is a matter of option luck. Thus is no need to compensate
at this level.
 • Dworkin also gives the concept of insurance- according to
him, it is the natural for the people to keep some
clamshells to offset even the impact of option luck. This
tool will be used for those who happened to be at
disadvantage in ambition sensitive auction.
2B. Equality of capabilities
▪ Amartya Sen
• Sen goes beyond the idea of equality of resources.
It is to be noted that the concept of equality is an
evolving concept. The concept of equality is linked
to concept of human dignity.
Even when we give equal resources, it is not necessary that we
achieve equality. Why? People different terms of capabilities.
With equal resources, some people will perform better because
their capabilities will be more. Hence state has to provide equality
w.r.t capabilities.
How sen describes capabilities?
There are two distinctive features of capability approach.
It is based on social choice. It takes into account real persons. In
reality, different persons may suffers from different type of
deprivations it also takes into account social factors.
Example- even equal resources may not give equal sense of well
being two girls and boys in India. Girls face more deprivation than
boys. Therefore capability approach takes into account social
situations also that is real person.
It takes multi dimensional view of poverty and not just absence
of income /resources.
It is a realisation focused approached- according to Sen, the
purpose of life is happiness that is well being. He gives the
concept of being and doing.
Being- existence, person should realise her importance, must get
respect from others (state of being loved and respected)
Doing- person doing what she wants to do. It is different from
what one is compelled to do. For example fasting is a choice,
hunger is deprivation. Fasting gives a sense of well-being while
hunger does not. Therefore capability approach does not look at
people as a means of economic growth, it considers people as the
end of economic growth or development. Therefore Amartya Sen
defines development in terms of freedom; Freedom in terms of
capabilities or functioning.
Affirmative action - positive intervention by State
Affirmative action denotes governments welfare policies in
favour of disadvantaged sections. In every society, there can be
certain sections which have been historically disadvantaged. For
example blacks in USA, dalits in India. This is a section which
cannot come at par with the other so called forward or advantaged
sections until and unless some external interventions or catalysts
are provided.
Affirmative action has to be class based rather than
individual based. It is meant for the community as a whole which
has suffered deprivation. For example in India, members of dalit
community are eligible for affirmative actions such as quota in
Jobs or educational institutions. Poor Brahmin will not qualify as
his community has not suffered any historical disadvantage. It
does not mean that he will not be eligible for States assistance,
but the nature of assistance will change. He will be eligible for
benefits under poverty alleviation programmes.

Affirmative action has to be differentiated from preferential

policies. for example giving reservation to dominant castes like
jatts in Haryana, marathas in Maharashtra. Sri Lankan
government policy towards sinhalese can also be seen as
preferential policies. Therefore differentiating to benefit the
dominant societies is a preferential action and disadvantaged
sections is affirmative action. Affirmative actions like quota in
India are highly contested. According to Ramachandra Guha,
debates on reservation generate more heat than light. Similarly
Pratap Bhanu Mehta suggests that reservation policies make us
immoral. Opinions on public are different from our opinions in
private.
Those who are against reservation believe that IT compromises
merit. It is a reverse discrimination. It is a type of compensatory
justice. Reservation policies are political gimmicks and do not
bring any real benefits. It is to be noted that reservation policy
will increase justice or not will depend on how it is conceptualised
and how it is implemented. For example in Ram Singh case (Jat
reservation), Supreme Court has directed that government should
identify the new vulnerable classes like transgenders. There is a
suggestion to introduce creamy layer concept even in scheduled
caste and Scheduled Tribes.
Supreme Court in Ashok Kumar case examining the validity of
reservation in higher educational institution has pointed out that
reservation policies are enabling policies. Enabling policy means
it cannot continue on permanent basis. Reservation policy is an
enabling policy means that we should be able to come to a
position where we can claim that we have achieved equality in
society and now there is no difference between forwards and
backwards. We have successfully uplifted them and reservation
is not needed anymore.