Site • RSS • Apple PodcastsDescription (podcaster-provided):
Although what constitutes justice may vary depending on culture or historical context, all forms of justice are built on a foundation of moral assumptions that include ideas about ethics, fairness and the law. Philosophers have often debated the nature of both morality and justice and their relationship with each other and in this collection we explore some of the most influential ideas on the topics from Kant to Bentham and investigate problems such as can inequalities be justified, provided they are to the benefit of the worst off?Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):
➤ Moral foundations of justice, ethics, fairness, law • Plato on self-interest, obedience, retribution • Utilitarianism classical vs modern • Kantian morality • Distributive justice, bias, inequality (Rawls) • Libertarian justice, taxation, forced labour (Nozick)This podcast introduces major philosophical approaches to morality and justice, treating both as grounded in moral assumptions about ethics, fairness, and the law, while also noting that conceptions of justice vary across cultures and historical periods. Across the episodes, the focus is on influential thinkers and frameworks that shape debates about why people obey laws, what makes actions morally right, and how social and political institutions should distribute benefits and burdens.
Listeners encounter questions about whether adherence to law reflects genuine virtue or pragmatic self-interest motivated by fear of punishment, and how that problem connects to broader accounts of justice. The podcast also compares utilitarian approaches, distinguishing classical formulations from more modern versions, and uses those contrasts to explore how consequences, wellbeing, and calculation might guide moral decision-making.
Another recurring theme is the role of duty and principle in ethics through engagement with Kantian moral philosophy, emphasizing how moral requirements may be grounded in rational obligations rather than outcomes. The podcast then turns to modern political philosophy, examining theories of distributive justice that aim to design fair social arrangements by reducing the influence of arbitrary biases, alongside libertarian challenges that prioritize strong individual rights and critique state redistribution, including arguments about the moral status of taxation.
Some entries are provided as transcripts of the audio material, mirroring the same topics in text form.
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Plato on justice and self interest 2011-Jun-13 17 minutes |
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Transcript -- Plato on justice and self interest 2011-Jun-13 |
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Classical and modern utilitarianism 2011-Jun-13 17 minutes |
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Transcript -- Classical and modern utilitarianism 2011-Jun-13 |
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Kant's moral philosophy 2011-Jun-13 13 minutes |
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Transcript -- Kant's moral philosophy 2011-Jun-13 |
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Rawls on distributive justice 2011-Jun-13 8 minutes |
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Transcript -- Rawls on distributive justice 2011-Jun-13 |
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Nozick on Libertarian theories of justice 2011-Jun-13 7 minutes |
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Transcript -- Nozick on Libertarian theories of justice 2011-Jun-13 |