Sunday, November 30, 2014

What is the principle of rights?

The principle of right theory, developed by Immanuel Kant in "Theory and Practice" and "Metaphysics of Morals," proposes that individuals in a society should have access to the maximum amount of freedom possible, withholding the freedom to infringe on any other individual's freedom. In other words, society should be organized so that people can coexist with legal equality, and have unrestricted freedom to act except when those actions would impact the rights of another. The principle of right, according to Kant, exists in societies with governing authorities because people knowingly sacrifice some freedom to government in exchange for the benefits, protections, and social organization of government. The role of government under this interpretation of society would be to provide protections and benefits while minimally restricting the freedom of each individual.

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