The Wrongs of Relational Inequalities

Abstract

Relational egalitarianism is concerned with the ways in which we relate to one another as equals and the social practices and structures that undermine this mode of social interaction. It is concerned with the form of the relationships we engage in, voluntarily or not, with other agents or social actors. The literature on relational equality is now quite vast, but most of it addresses two central questions (Fourie, Schuppert, and Walliman-Helmer 2015, 10). The first concerns the distinction between relational equality and other conceptions of equality—mostly luck and distributive egalitarianism—and connected concepts. The second has to do with the nature of relational equality—that is, what makes certain ways of relating to one another egalitarian or inegalitarian and why relational egalitarianism is a form of egalitarianism Show more