MUSI 2540 Study Guide - Summer 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Feminism, Ethics, Me Too Movement
12 Oct 2018
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MUSI 2540
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
“If there are limits beyond which society starts to disintegrate, what are they?” -Sally Witcher
Recording is a very male-dominated industry and i worked with a band who didn’t think I truly
knew anything. They only looked to my male-helpers for guidance, not talking to me directly. I
do consider this to be a social injustice, because from my perspective, it seemed like they were
judging my skills and knowledge based on my gender alone and not knowing me. Maybe they
just didn’t like me to begin with - but it’s strange how they happened to bond closely with my
male peers upon meeting them, but have a distaste of my workings.
Polar Perspectives on Social Justice
Position A: An unfettered market permits everyone equal opportunity to succeed. The State
should not be involved in regulation or redistribution.
Position B: Individuals do not have equal control over their situation and, therefore, equal stake
in the market. State enforced redistribution is necessary to level the playing field.
The world (and our country, and our community, and even our classroom) is full of competing,
visions of society and human nature.
Detecting unfairness…
● Position A: We have an innate ability
● Position B: We employ sound reasoning
● Position C: We develop our awareness through our relationships with others.
Whether we believe that we are innately capable of detecting human suffering or employ sound
reasoning to arrive at this conclusion, we need information and an understanding about the
circumstances and perspectives of others, in order ot name something an injustice.
“What is a just society?”
According to Amartya Sen…
● A “transcendental” approach to achieve an all-time perfect society is doomed to failure.
● A definition of a perfecrtly just society is neither necessary nor sufficient for identifying
injustice and action to address is.
● A comparative approach will allow social justice to progress.
A comparative approach is complicated!
● How does one measure the intrinsically intangible?
○ How do you measure which mountain is more rewarding to climb? Which
painting is more artistic?
○ How can one measure a social justice goal of self-respect?
Our subjective judgement is informed by our social and cultural context.
● In Context A, women’s right to work outside of the home is strictly prohibited.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
● In Context B, free healthcare for all citizens is considered a universal right.
● In Context C, individuals with disabilities are protected from discrimination in all areas of
public life, including jobs, schools, and transportation.
Rawls on social distribution…
● Society should be structed so that the greatest possible amount of liberty is given to all
members, and only limited in such case that the liberty of any one member would
infringe upon that of any other member.
○ You should be able to do whatever you want as long as you don’t hinder others
from doing whatever they want to do.
● “Social and economic inequalities should be arranged so that they are both a) to the
greatest benefit of the least advantaged...and b) attached to positions and offices pen to
all under conditions of fair equality and opportunity”
Perspectives on distributive justice:
● The Egalitarian: resources should be equalized - give the flute to the child with no toys.
● The Libertarian: it is up to each individual to do with their own resources as they see fit.
The flute maker should do with her instrument as she sees fit.
● The Utilitarian: resources should be allocated, according to some personal quality or
ability. The flute should be given to the child who can play it.
What advantages are valued in our society - tangible and intangible?
● Love
● Money
● Career
● Kids
● Housing
● Food
● Respect
● Education
Can you/should you redistribute these equally across the country?
Redistribute food across the country by regulating it. Every time someone over a certain pay
class purchases food, a percentage of that bill will go towards feeding someone less fortunate in
the area. Like an extra tax but that goes straight to the people who need it.
“Both the tangible good to be distributed and the nature of the relationship through which
distribution occurs are factors in social justice.”
The Challenges of Distributive Justice
● An equal distribution of goods would not limit the possibility of inequality: People will
make different decisions about how to use these resources.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
If there are limits beyond which society starts to disintegrate, what are they? -sally witcher. Recording is a very male-dominated industry and i worked with a band who didn"t think i truly knew anything. They only looked to my male-helpers for guidance, not talking to me directly. I do consider this to be a social injustice, because from my perspective, it seemed like they were judging my skills and knowledge based on my gender alone and not knowing me. Maybe they just didn"t like me to begin with - but it"s strange how they happened to bond closely with my male peers upon meeting them, but have a distaste of my workings. Position a: an unfettered market permits everyone equal opportunity to succeed. The state should not be involved in regulation or redistribution. Position b: individuals do not have equal control over their situation and, therefore, equal stake in the market.
