y_feldblum Posted April 20, 2004 Report Share Posted April 20, 2004 Is the principle of rights an ethical principle or a political principle; ie, which branch of philosophy deals with the concept? Going deeper, what exactly is the dividing line between the two branches in general? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betsy Posted April 20, 2004 Report Share Posted April 20, 2004 Is the principle of rights an ethical principle or a political principle; ie, which branch of philosophy deals with the concept?It is both, which is why you will find Ayn Rand's essay, "Man's Rights," in both The Virtue of Selfishness (her book on ethics) and Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal (her book on politics). The concept of "rights" is the bridge between ethics and politics. It is "a moral principle defining and sanctioning a man's freedom of action in a social context." It is a moral principle applied to a social (i.e., a political) context. Going deeper, what exactly is the dividing line between the two branches in general? Ethics and politics are not separate domains. Politics is a subset of ethics. It is ethics applied to social interactions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
y_feldblum Posted April 20, 2004 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2004 Ethics and politics are not separate domains. Politics is a subset of ethics. I knew that. I meant to ask, are rights an ethical principle, or an ethical-political principle? Is your answer that the concept of rights is the fundamental principle of politics? I get that from your equation of "in a social context" with "political". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betsy Posted April 20, 2004 Report Share Posted April 20, 2004 I knew that. I meant to ask, are rights an ethical principle, or an ethical-political principle? An ethical-political principle. Is your answer that the concept of rights is the fundamental principle of politics? Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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