A Theory of Justice by John Rawls

This book presents a seminal work in modern political philosophy, where the author proposes a model of justice that, despite being egalitarian, respects individual rights. The author's "veil of ignorance" thought experiment, which suggests designing society from an original position where no one knows their future place in society, has been particularly influential. The author argues that this would lead to a system where each individual is assured basic liberties and socio-economic inequalities are only allowed if they benefit the least advantaged members of society.

The 1114th greatest book of all time


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Total Points: 336

Since this book was first published in 1971, there is a penalty of 0%. The age adjusted score is 336.0.

This is to prevent newer books from reaching super high on the ranked list of the greatest books of all time. The greatest books should also stand the test of time.