Global Justice and the Priority of Basic Goods to Basic Freedoms: Reflexions on Amartya Sen’s Development and Freedom

  • Mario Solís Umaña Escuela de Filosofía Universidad de Costa Rica
Keywords: Freedom, development, social justice, global justice, basic goods, priority problem

Abstract

The paper examines Amartya Sen’s seminal work Development and Freedom (1999) in relation to his underlying conception of justice and particularly in relation to the tension that arises in the correlation between basic freedom and basic goods. The idea is to address the question as to which of the two elements (basic goods or basic freedoms) takes precedence to the enactment of global justice. The paper advances a particular distinction between a foundational approach and a functional approach when  addressing the question of the priority and primacy of any of the two elements and sheds light on a contentious answer, namely, that basic goods are foundationally primary in relation to basic freedoms and that such a primacy does not rule out the functional priority of basic freedoms.

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Published
2012-06-24
How to Cite
Solís Umaña M. (2012). Global Justice and the Priority of Basic Goods to Basic Freedoms: Reflexions on Amartya Sen’s Development and Freedom. Revista de Filosofía , 37(1), 123-153. https://doi.org/10.5209/rev_RESF.2012.v37.n1.39300
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Articles