Discussing if liberty and equality can be reconciled in political theory

Liberty and equality belong to the same category as moral conceptions. Despite both aiming at improving lives of the people, their relationship is in conflict so that we have to choose between them. Liberty and equality have been discussed over and over and those discussions have been generally inconclusive. Philosophers and scholars who embarked on this discussion have ended up with different notions. From egalitarian point of view, liberty and equality cannot coexist peacefully and they clash in the area of property rights. Property is infringed by government to compensate those who naturally do not own much property. On the contention of the two concepts, Ronald Dworkin argues that if there really were a conflict between equality and liberty, equality would have to win (Dworkin, 2000). This sentiment implies that the two terms are rivals. Let us take equality of wealth as a goal; achieving and maintaining equal wealth amongst citizens would require violation of liberty. Maintaining equality of wealth would require a redistribution of resources over a time such as taking wealth from other people and give it to others infringing upon the right to private property. Dworkin stresses that egalitarians are mainly concerned with socio-economic equality imposed by the state through progressive taxes and welfare provision (Dworkin, 2000). Basing on the original position that all men have equal access to goods, it will be justifiable for the state to introduce redistributive taxes on the rich who do not have any justified claim to their property. This paper will further examine the conflict between liberty and equality by looking at their definitions from the perspective of different philosophers and scholars.

Liberty, over the...

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...perty rights. The incompatibility of the two concepts is biased towards the disadvantaged saying those better-off deserve their advantages and that they should not be taken away. Here, it is crystal clear that liberty and equality are in conflict and cannot be reconciled basing on property rights.

Bibliography

Berlin, I. (1990), Four Essays on Liberty: Two Concepts of Liberty. New York: Oxford University Press.

Dworkin, R. (2000), The Place of Liberty in Sovereign Virtue: Cambridge Harvard University Press.

Farrelly, C. (2003), An Introduction to Contemporary Political Theory: London: Sage Publications Limited

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Mill, J.S. (1989), On Liberty, Ed.: Illinois: Harlan Davidson, Inc.