Social justice in a global world
Social justice in a global world
Per i Corsi di laurea:
- EPS n.o.; totale cfu 6
Periodo di erogazione 1° trimestre
Prof. BESUSSI ANTONELLA , DIPARTIMENTO DI SCIENZE SOCIALI E POLITICHE
Indirizzo:
02503 21204 - v. Conservatorio, 7
Mail:
antonella.besussi@unimi.it
Prof. FRATTINI TOMMASO , DIPARTIMENTO DI ECONOMIA, MANAGEMENT E METODI QUANTITATIVI
Indirizzo:
02503 21535 - v. Conservatorio, 7
Mail:
Tommaso.Frattini@unimi.it
L'Insegnamento sviluppa crediti sui seguenti settori scientifico disciplinari
6 cfu SPS/04 (6 cfu)
Obiettivi
This course is articulated in two parts.
Part 1: This part of the course addresses normative challenges of distributive justice with a particular focus on the global
dimension. Throughout the discussion of the problem of inequalities at the global level, it solicits foundational questions in
moral and political philosophy with respect to the grounds and scope of justice. In this sense, this part has two main aims:
on one hand, it will focus on basic questions concerning the problem of distributive justice with a general overview of the
main positions within the contemporary philosophical debate. On the other hand, it will tackle issues concerning how to
morally assess political and economic institutions beyond the nation state. Questions pursued in this course include: what is
relevant to distributive justice (income, wealth, opportunities, welfare, etc.)? On what basis should the distribution be
made? Are there any obligations of distributive justice? Are inequalities at the domestic level different from inequalities at
the international one?
Part 2: This part of the course addresses inequality and distributional issues from an economic point of view. Topics
covered include: how to measure inequality, in its different dimensions, within and across countries; the evolution of
inequality in Western countries over the last decades and its causes; the trade/technology/institutions debate; the role of
immigration in determining economic inequality.
Short Course Description
Part 1: This part of the course has a twofold focus. On one hand, it addresses the general debate of distributive justice and its main
concepts and approaches; on the other, it tackles the problem of global justice.
Part 2: This part of the course addresses inequality from an economic point of view. It first discusses measurement issues, and then
analyses recent evolution of within country inequality and its causes.
Materiale di riferimento
Syllabus - part 1
Week 1: Preliminaries
• Lu, C. (1998) “Images of Justice: Justice as a Bond, a Boundary and a Balance”, The Journal of Political Philosophy, 6(1), pp. 1-26.
• Maffettone, S. (2012) “Justice”, in A. Besussi [ed.] A Companion to Political Philosophy. Methods, Tools, Topics, Farnham: Ashgate,
pp. 183-194.
• Carter, I. (2012) “Equality”, in A. Besussi [ed.] A Companion to Political Philosophy. Methods, Tools, Topics, Farnham: Ashgate, pp.
161-170
Week 2: The Rawlsian Paradigm
• Rawls, J. (1971) A theory of justice, Cambridge: Harvard University Press (parts).
Week 3: The Rawlsian Paradigm
• Rawls, J. (1971) A theory of justice, Cambridge: Harvard University Press (parts).
Week 4: Students’ presentations
Week 5: Egalitarianism
• Sen, A. (1980) “Equality of what?”, Tanner Lectures on Human Values.
• Walzer, M. (1983) Spheres of Justice, New York, Basic Books, chap. 1.
Week 6: Students’ presentations
Week 7: Theories of global justice
• Beitz, C. R. (2005) “Cosmopolitanism and Global Justice”, The Journal of Ethics, 9(1/2), pp. 11-27.
• Rawls, J. (1999) The law of the peoples, Cambridge: Harvard University Press (parts).
• Pogge, T. W. (1994) “An egalitarian law of peoples”, Philosophy & Public Affairs, 23(3), pp. 195-224.
Week 8: Students’ presentations
Week 9: Global justice and its critics
• Miller, D. (2005) “Against Global Egalitarianism”, The Journal of Ethics, 9(1/2), pp. 55-79.
• Nagel, T. (2005) “The Problem of Global Justice”, Philosophy and Public Affairs, 33, pp. 113-147.
Week 10: Students’ presentations
Syllabus - part 2
Lecture 1: Inequality: trends, concepts and measuremet
• Cowell, F. A. (2011) Measuring Inequality (third edition), Oxford University Press, Oxford. (parts)
• Milanovic, B. (2005) Worlds Apart – Measuring International and Global Inequality, Princeton University Press, (parts)
• Salverda, W., Nolan, B. and Smeeding, T.M. (2009) The Oxford Handbook of Economic Inequality, Oxford University Press, (parts)
Lecture 2: Inequality: trends, concepts and measuremet
• Cowell, F. A. (2011) Measuring Inequality (third edition), Oxford University Press, Oxford. (parts)
• Milanovic, B. (2005) Worlds Apart – Measuring International and Global Inequality, Princeton University Press, (parts)
• Salverda, W., Nolan, B. and Smeeding, T.M. (2009) The Oxford Handbook of Economic Inequality, Oxford University Press, (parts)
Lecture 3: The determinants of recent changes in within country inequality
• Lemieux, T. (2008) “The changing nature of wage inequality”, Journal of Population Economics, 21:21–48.
Lecture 4: The determinants of recent changes in within country inequality: skill biased technical change
• Card, D. and DiNardo, J.(2002) "Skill-Biased Technological Change and Rising Wage Inequality: Some Problems and Puzzles"
Journal of Labor Economics, 20(4), 733-783.
Lecture 5: Students’ presentations
Lecture 6: The determinants of recent changes in within country inequality: trade
• Wood, A. (1995). "How Trade Hurt Unskilled Workers." Journal of Economic Perspectives, 9(3): 57-80.
Lecture 7: Students’ presentations
Lecture 8: The determinants of recent changes in within country inequality: institutions
• Fortin, N.M., and Lemieux, T. (1997). "Institutional Changes and Rising Wage Inequality: Is There a Linkage?" Journal of Economic
Perspectives, 11(2): 75-96.
Lecture 9: Students’ presentations
Lecture 10: Immigration and Inequality
• Card, David. 2009. "Immigration and Inequality." American Economic Review, 99(2): 1-21
Prerequisiti e modalità d'esame , con riferimento ai descrittori 1 e 2
Attendant students
Part 1: Students will be assessed on the basis of their performances in discussions and presentations. At the end of the course,
students will be required to deliver an in-class written test. While the written test is meant to offer students the opportunity to show
their knowledge about the issues addressed during the course, presentations aim to assess their capacity to present and critically
discuss a topic, to propose original readings and insights about it, and to consistently defend their claims. Final grades will be
awarded by weighting participation, presentation and test as follows:
Participation 25 %
Presentation 35 %
Test 40 %
Part 2: Students will be assessed on the basis of their performances in discussions and presentations. At the end of the course,
students will be required to deliver an in-class written test. While the written test is meant to offer students the opportunity to show
their knowledge about the issues addressed during the course, presentations aim to assess their capacity to present and critically
discuss a topic, to propose original readings and insights about it, and to consistently defend their claims. Final grades will be
awarded by weighting participation, presentation and test as follows:
Participation 25 %
Presentation 35 %
Test 40 %
Prerequisiti e modalità d'esame per non frequentanti , con riferimento ai descrittori 1 e 2
Non attendant students
Part 1: For non-attendant students the exam is divided into two parts: a written test and an oral examination (provided the written
test is passed). The written test and the oral examination contribute to the final mark each for 50%.
Part 2: Written examination.
Metodi Didattici
The course combines lessons, students’ presentations, and class discussion.
Lingua di insegnamento
English
Materiale di riferimento per non frequentanti
Part 1:
Material for the written test
• Maffettone, S. (2012) “Justice”, in A. Besussi [ed.] A Companion to Political Philosophy. Methods, Tools, Topics, Farnham: Ashgate,
pp. 183-194.
• Carter, I. (2012) “Equality”, in A. Besussi [ed.] A Companion to Political Philosophy. Methods, Tools, Topics, Farnham: Ashgate, pp.
161-170.
• Brock, G. (2009) Global Justice: A Cosmopolitan Account, Oxford: Oxford University Press, Chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, 9.
Material for the oral examination:
Each student should prepare two readings from the following list:
• Beitz, C. R. (2005) “Cosmopolitanism and Global Justice”, The Journal of Ethics, 9(1/2), pp. 11-27.
• Pogge, T. (2005) “Real World Justice”, The Journal of Ethics, 9(1/2), pp. 29-53.
• Miller, D. (2005) “Against Global Egalitarianism”, The Journal of Ethics, 9(1/2), pp. 55-79.
• Arneson, R. J. (2005) “Do patriotic ties limit Global Justice duties?”, Current Debates in Global Justice, (2), pp. 127-150.
• Risse, M. (2005) “What do we owe to the global poor”, The Journal of Ethics, 9(1/2), pp. 81-117.
• Nagel, T. (2005) “The Problem of Global Justice”, Philosophy and Public Affairs, 33, pp. 113-147.
• Ypi, L. (2013) “Cosmopolitanism Without If and Without But”, in G. Brock [ed.] Cosmopolitanism versus Non-Cosmopolitanism,
Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 75–91.
• Sangiovanni, A. (2013) “On the Relation between Moral and Distributive Equality”, in G. Brock [ed.] Cosmopolitanism versus NonCosmopolitanism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 55-74.
Part 2:
Material for the written examination
• Cowell, F. A. (2011) Measuring Inequality (third edition), Oxford University Press, Oxford, chapters 1-2
• Milanovic, B. (2005) Worlds Apart – Measuring International and Global Inequality, Princeton University Press, chapters 1-3.
• Salverda, W., Nolan, B. and Smeeding, T.M. (2009) The Oxford Handbook of Economic Inequality, Oxford University Press, (parts),
chapter 3
• Lemieux, T. (2008) “The changing nature of wage inequality”, Journal of Population Economics, 21:21–48.
• Card, D. and DiNardo, J.(2002) "Skill-Biased Technological Change and Rising Wage Inequality: Some Problems and Puzzles"
Journal of Labor Economics, 20(4), 733-783.
• Berman, E., Bound, J. and Machin, S. (1998) "Implications Of Skill-Biased Technological Change: International Evidence" The
Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 113(4), 1245-1279.
• Wood, A. (1995). "How Trade Hurt Unskilled Workers." Journal of Economic Perspectives, 9(3): 57-80.
• Feenstra, R. C. (1998). "Integration of Trade and Disintegration of Production in the Global Economy." Journal of Economic
Perspectives, 12(4): 31-50.
• Fortin, N.M., and Lemieux, T. (1997). "Institutional Changes and Rising Wage Inequality: Is There a Linkage?" Journal of Economic
Perspectives, 11(2): 75-96.
• Dustmann, C., Ludsteck, J. and Schönberg, U. (2009), “Revisiting the German Wage Structure”, The Quarterly Journal of
Economics, 124 (2): 843-881.
• Card, D. (2009). "Immigration and Inequality." American Economic Review, 99(2): 1-21