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Analysis Of John Rawls 'Veil Of Ignorance'

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John Rawls is probably the most influential political philosopher of the 20th century. His well-known difference principles, as well as the "Veil of Ignorance" not only show on the textbook of any students study politics but are also frequently cited by politicians in public debates. However, the Rawlsian theory of justice has received many critics as well. One thing that is attacked most, is the fact that the whole theory is mainly based on assumptions of an ideal society. It is seen as problematic by many scholars. Some, for example, think that a theory describing perfect just societies cannot tell us what kind of society is more desirable in real life. Some others critics that the assumption does not relate to reality since it neglects so many inequalities and injustice in the world like gender and race discriminations, thus cannot help to prove the society. People may also question the "Original Position" and "Veil of Ignorance" because it is impossible to happen in reality. Then, does it means all Rawls has suggested are inane and do not worth study? I would argue that the theory on ideal justices is necessary for the study of politics. First of all, the study of ideal justice provides us the criteria and …show more content…

Such criteria and order of different priorities are also needed to compare the less just societies in reality. Because without a concrete standard, we cannot make decisions among societies that are specialized on different aspects of "justice". Only if we know the ranking of these aspects can we decide which society is more desirable. In other words, the theory of justice is valuable for it provides us an order that enables us to make judgments between non-perfect society during its exploration of a perfect

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