Mendeley TY _ JOUR ID - 1402082844753 TI - Critique of the Idea of Government Neutrality in the Views of Ronald Dworkin JO - Pizhūhish-i siyāsat-i nazāri JA - ES LA - fa SN - 2008-5796 AU - Khakbaz Afshin AU - Hoseyni Beheshti seyed alireza AU - AD - AD - علوم انسانی AD - دانشکده روابط بین الملل وزارت امور خارجه Y1 - 2024 PY - 2024 VL - 34 IS - SP - 61 EP - 96 KW - Ronald Dworkin KW - State neutrality KW - Autonomy KW - Authenticity KW - Paternalism. DO - N2 -

Critique of the Idea of Government Neutrality

 

in the Views of Ronald Dworkin

 

                                                         

 

Afshin Khakbaz*

 

Seyyed Alireza Hosseini Beheshti **

 

Seyyed Ali Mahmoudi***

 

 

 

One of the fundamental concepts that categorizes intellectuals who speak within the framework of liberalism into various groups is autonomy itself and its limits and boundaries. Among these categories, one can refer to the division between supporters of government neutrality and perfectionism, or in other words advocates of non-intervention or government intervention in relation to different aspects of life, which place liberal thinkers in two distinct camps in terms of the limits and boundaries they advocate for. Dworkin constructs his theory of equality based on two principles of concern and equal respect and unique responsibility and extracts government neutrality and autonomy from these two principles. Like many advocates of government neutrality, he attaches importance to autonomy; however, he does not endorse absolute autonomy and advocates for limits and boundaries. He distinguishes between autonomy and authenticity, considering autonomy to have a narrower scope than authenticity. Dworkin, while opposing the adoption of paternalistic policies by the government, does not outright negate government intervention in various areas of political and social life, deeming such interventions to some extent necessary and unavoidable. This article, utilizing a descriptive-analytical approach, critically examines the concept of autonomy and its position in Dworkin's intellectual framework and seeks to answer the question of what place autonomy and consequently neutrality hold in Dworkin's thought. Ultimately, this article concludes that although the restriction of autonomy in his views, especially regarding equality in resources, is more than he admits, a paternalistic viewpoint stands out in certain aspects of his theory of resource equality.

 

 

 

Keywords: Ronald Dworkin, State neutrality, Autonomy, Authenticity, Paternalism.

 


* Corresponding Author: Ph.D Student of Political Thought, Tarbiat Modares University, Iran.

afshinkhakbaz2012@gmail.com

** Assistant Professor, Political Science Department, Tarbiat Modares University, Iran.

abeheshti2002@yahoo.com

*** Professor, Department of Political Science, Faculty of International Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Iran.

mahmoudi3000@gmail.com

 

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