Fifty Years of A Theory of Justice
A Theory of Justice was published in 1971, this year is 2021, the epic completes 50 years. I am sure that if not for a covid year, this fact would have received due attention. Students of political science in India come across the name of this book and its author, when they learn about death and decline in political theory and its revival. On other occasions they come across this book when they encounter the deadlock between utilitarianism and moral intuitionism. A Theory of Justice or justice is usually a core part of most syllabuses and curricula in India and elsewhere. This wasn’t the case earlier. I was unaware about this book when graduation (B.A.) was over and it was listed as reading for an 'optional' course in M.A., and read the significant part of A Theory of Justice while pursuing M.Phil! All this is as recent as late nineties. The impact of first and subsequent reading has stayed with the author since. Natural sciences dominate the knowledge world and so ordinary ...