John Rawls Veil Of Ignorance

The concept of justice as a virtue existing in any given society is one worth giving attention to, as it ensures that all people regardless of race, gender, and sexuality, be given equal opportunities under the law. As individuals we all possess certain differences that make us unique, such as intelligence, talent, social status, etc. These things result in preducies that people face and is the common reason why achieving justice is hard. By philosophical definition, Justice is the equal distribution of some good no matter if it is just or unjust. John Rawls, a liberal political philosopher, argues that each individual in a just society holds an inviolability which cannot be overridden by concerns for the well being of society as a whole. He provides the example of the basic

He states that the veil is a device used in the original position to blind people to all the bias and prejudice that they may have of each other in order to come together into agreement and make a rational decision on choosing a set of principles to government the basic structure. Therefore, as people go through the veil of ignorance they abandon everything that sets them apart from another person, such as social status, level of wealth, race, gender, and the class structure existing in society. “It ensures that no one is advantaged or disadvantaged in the choice of principles by the outcome of natural chance or the contingency of social circumstances” (Rawls pg. 124). By making this comment, Rawls is asserting that the veil of ignorance can be used to achieve justice as “fairness”. With the veil in place, representatives are able to collectively come to a decision without disagreement. However, without it [the veil of ignorance] there would be chaos and everyone would have difficulty agreeing on a set is principles because of the existence of