What Is Equality?

Question

What is equality, and why is it so controversial? The question arises because nearly everyone endorses equality in the abstract, but this consensus fractures when we ask what equality requires — equality of what, for whom, and under what conditions?

Quick Answer

Equality is the principle that all persons are of equal moral worth. The philosophical debate centers on the question of what equality requires. Equality of opportunity holds that positions should be open to all and that individuals should compete on a fair basis. Equality of outcome holds that goods should be distributed equally. Equality of resources, associated with Ronald Dworkin, holds that people should have equal access to the means of pursuing their plans of life. Equality of welfare holds that everyone's preferences should be equally satisfied. The capabilities approach, developed by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum, argues that equality should be measured in terms of what people are actually able to do and be.

Historical Wisdom

Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Discourse on the Origin of Inequality (1755) is the founding text of modern egalitarian thought. Rousseau argues that the natural condition of humanity is one of equality — it is the invention of property and civilization that creates inequality. The rich, he writes, 'having once accustomed themselves to the conveniences of life, would never be able to give them up.' This inequality corrupts both the rich and the poor, creating the conditions for despotism.

Karl Marx's critique of capitalism is also a critique of inequality. Marx argued that formal equality before the law is a mask for substantive inequality in the economic sphere. Workers are formally free to sell their labor but substantively compelled to do so by the absence of any alternative. True equality, for Marx, requires the abolition of class society and the collective ownership of the means of production.

Philosophical Perspectives

The most influential contemporary theory of equality is John Rawls's justice-as-fairness, which includes the difference principle: social and economic inequalities are permissible only if they benefit the least advantaged. Rawls does not require perfect equality but argues that the basic structure of society should be arranged to maximize the position of the worst off.

Ronald Dworkin's equality of resources holds that the goal of distributive justice is to make people equal in the resources they have, correcting for differences in natural talent and luck. Amartya Sen's capabilities approach shifts the focus from resources to functionings — what people are actually able to do and be. Two people with the same resources may have very different capabilities, and equality requires equalizing capabilities, not resources.

The critics of equality include Robert Nozick, who argues that liberty disrupts patterns of equality, and the luck egalitarians, who argue that equality should correct for brute luck but not for choices.

Lessons From Thinkers

From Rousseau: inequality is not natural but social, and it corrupts human relations. From Marx: formal equality is not enough; we must also address the structure of ownership. From Rawls: inequality is permissible only when it works to the benefit of the least advantaged. From Dworkin: the goal is to make people equal in resources, correcting for luck. From Sen and Nussbaum: what matters is what people can actually do and be. From Nozick: any theory of equality must account for the value of liberty.

Practical Application

Equality is at the center of policy debates about taxation, welfare, healthcare, education, and affirmative action. Progressive taxation and welfare programs are instruments for reducing inequality. Debates about the minimum wage, universal basic income, and public education are debates about what equality requires. The philosophical question — what is equality? — is therefore a practical question about the kind of society we want to build.