In 1971 John Rawls's A Theory of Justice transformed twentieth-century political philosophy, and it ranks among the most influential works in the history of the subject. This volume of new essays marks the 50th anniversary of its publication with a multi-faceted exploration of Rawls's most important book. A team of distinguished contributors reflects on Rawls's achievement in essays on his relationship to modern political philosophy and 20th-century economic theory, on his Kantianism, on his transition to political liberalism, on his account of public reason and contemporary challenges to it, on his theory's implications for problems of racial justice, on democracy and its fragility, and on Rawls's enduring legacy. The volume will be valuable for students and scholars working in moral and political philosophy, political theory, legal theory, and religious ethics.

‘In this volume some of the leading political philosophers working today demonstrate unequivocally that 50 years after the publication of A Theory of Justice, the Rawlsian framework remains a rich and productive source of insight. While some of the contributions shed light on that framework itself and its development, others use its resources to push into areas that Rawls himself did not address in depth. Whether tracing the development of the idea of public reason within and beyond Rawls's own work, comparing Rawls with important historical and contemporary figures, or assessing the ability of justice as fairness to address issues of racial injustice, the essays are of uniformly high quality.'

Jon Mandle - SUNY Albany

‘The generations that have grown up witnessing regular major recessions in 2008 and 2020 have begun rediscovering Rawls’s work and putting it to the more radical purposes it was intended for. This makes the new collection Rawls’s A Theory of Justice at 50, edited by Paul Weithman, a welcome contribution.’

Matt McManus Source: Jacobin