Hume, The Circumstances of Justice, and Paternalism - Prof Mike Ridge

David Hume's theory of justice led him to articulate and argue for a very influential theory of what has come to be called the "circumstances of justice" - those circumstances in which justice is both possible and necessary. John Rawls, among others, has been very influenced by Hume's account of the circumstances of justice, and it has received much critical discussion. In this paper, I develop a new objection to Hume's account: Hume's best reply to the standard objections to his theory leave him especially vulnerable to a new charge - that of being committed to an odious form of paternalism. Audio podcast, recorded Friday 28 October 2011. Listen to podcast