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Justice for Hedgehogs

Disciplines:
philosophy
political philosophy

Summary

Dworkin's final major philosophical work — a unified account of all value, arguing that ethics (how to live well) and morality (how to treat others) are mutually supporting and derive from the foundational value of dignity.

Core Contribution

The unity of value: all genuine values cohere — there are no genuine conflicts between truth, beauty, justice, and love when properly understood. Dignity as the foundation: two principles — self-respect (each person matters) and authenticity (each person is responsible for their own life). The hedgehog knows one big thing: all values reduce to the single principle of dignity.

Historical Influences

Isaiah Berlin

Intellectual Lineage

Liberal Political Theory Analytic Philosophy

Allied Works

Taking Rights Seriously Law's Empire Sovereign Virtue

Contemporaries & Peers

The Fragility of Goodness

Minds Influenced

Political Philosophy

Intellectual Posterity

Liberal Political Theory

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Justice for Hedgehogs

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