A Theory of Justice

“Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought.”

This first sentence of the first section of the book articulates its theory, purpose, and the guidelines for its reasoning. Justice is to be given priority among social institutions and equal basic liberties are to be given priority within the theory of justice. These principles are interrogated in the following pages to prove their validity as philosophical arguments.

“[T]he guiding idea is that the principles of justice for the basic structure of society are the object of the original agreement. They are the principles that free and rational persons concerned to further their own interests would accept in an initial position of equality as defining the fundamental terms of their association.”

This provision explains the original position, the vantage of persons in the original position, and the agreement reached in the original position. By illustrating this criterion, this provision lays the groundwork for all Rawls’s subsequent theorizing in the text.

“Now by an institution I shall understand a public system of rules which defines offices and positions with their rights and duties, powers, and immunities, and the like.”

Social justice flows through institutions, highlighting the theme of The Importance of Institutions in Maintaining Justice. People in the offices of such institutions should compel them to act in accordance with established principles of justice to govern societies.