Sentiment or Duty? Liberalism and International Justice
The question of whether traditional liberalism can function as the foundation of social justice in the future is investigated. Liberalism's ambiguous treatment of ethical & moral issues in its attempt to ensure both individual autonomy & cosmopolitanism is reviewed. The problem concerning whether liberalism should treat international justice as both theory & practice is addressed. The need to integrate the concepts of duty & sentiment into contemporary liberal thought is then discussed. Informed by the thought of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, it is subsequently asserted that the language of sentiment offers an alternative that allows democratic societies to accept certain moral laws while avoiding violations of principles of social justice. Difficulties that arise when universalist & particularist thought are negotiated within the context of international justice are also covered. It is concluded that liberalism's claim that membership in a given political community is not an ethical issue requires additional review. 18 References. J. W. Parker