Synopsis
A communitarian critique arguing that liberalism rests on an implausible picture of the self as unencumbered by community, ends, and attachments.
Core passage idea
Paraphrase · Modern copyrighted workWe are not abstract choosers who pick our values from nowhere; we are partly constituted by communities and commitments we never chose.
It challenges the liberal idea of a self that exists prior to its ends, questioning the foundations of Rawlsian justice.
To avoid a bubble
Pair with John Rawls, A Theory of Justice.
Reading note
Read it alongside Rawls; the target is the 'unencumbered self' behind the veil of ignorance.
Best paired with
John Rawls, A Theory of Justice