Anthony Appiah’s recently published book As If: Idealization and Ideals is an insightful and original treatment of the role of idealization in philosophical thought. This has been a hot topic in recent political philosophy. But, part of what makes Appiah’s discussion more interesting than most is that he places his discussion of ‘ideal theory’ within a … Continue reading Kwame Anthony Appiah, “Political Ideals: Lessons from John Rawls” in As If: Idealization and Ideals.→| Political Not Metaphysical
In “Ideal and NonIdeal Theory”, A. John Simmons takes up the familiar distinction Rawlsian distinction, a distinction Simmons thinks has not received enough “sustained attention”. His aim is to “rationally reconstruct” Rawls’s position on the distinction, defend Rawls’s approach against alternatives, and reply to some criticisms of Rawls’s approach. Rawls’s Ideal Theory Rawls divides any … Continue reading A. John Simmons, Ideal and Nonideal Theory→| Political Not Metaphysical