Equality and Justice

Where it surfaces

• P. J. Proudhon

  Proudhon's principle of equality is central to his critique of property and his economic theories, as seen in his early memoirs and the influence of Adam Smith.

• What Is Property?

  The chapter frames the inquiry in terms of achieving true equality and justice, which property is argued to undermine.

• I

  Proudhon argues that justice is the supreme law and that property must be examined against it; he asserts that arguments for property inevitably lead to equality, negating property.

• § 1: Property as a Natural Right

  Contrasts the absolute rights of liberty, equality, and security with property, which he claims is incompatible with true equality and justice.

• § 2: Occupation, as the Title to Property

  The chapter argues that true justice requires equal access to the means of life, and that property based on occupation violates this equality.

• § 1: The Land Cannot Be Appropriated

  The chapter emphasizes that equality of needs demands equality of possession, rejecting unequal property rights.

• § 2: Universal Consent No Justification of Property

  The chapter argues that any valid consent would require reciprocal surrenders, leading back to equality, and that property violates this.

• § 3: Prescription Gives No Title to Property

  Proudhon insists that true justice requires equality of possessions, and that prescription, if valid, must presuppose equality.

• § 5: That Labor Leads to Equality of Property

  The chapter asserts that labor leads to equality, as every worker has a natural right to the value they create, challenging existing property hierarchies.

• § 6: That in Society All Wages Are Equal

  Central theme: Proudhon asserts that social equality demands equal wages, as natural inequalities neutralize themselves through association.

• § 7: That Inequality of Powers Is the Necessary Condition of Equality of Fortunes

  Proudhon argues that natural inequality of powers is the very condition for equality of fortunes, challenging the idea that talent deserves greater reward.

• IV

  The chapter centers on the necessity and possibility of equality, countering claims that equality is unattainable and linking justice to mathematical truth.

• Sixth Proposition

  Proudhon argues that property is incompatible with political and civil equality.

• V

  The chapter focuses on the antagonism between the desire for property and the rule of equality, and the need to define justice.

• § 1 Of the Moral Sense in Man and the Animals

  The chapter questions the uniqueness of human justice, suggesting that moral sense is a matter of degree, not a divine gift exclusive to humans.

• § 2

  Central theme: justice is defined as sociability combined with equality; property as inequality is declared unjust and impossible.

• § 3

  Proudhon asserts equality of conditions as a natural law and insists that justice (equal distribution) must precede équité (benevolence).

• § 1

  The chapter emphasizes man's innate search for equality and justice, and the social disorder from their misapplication.

• Determination of the Third Form of Society. Conclusion.

  Proudhon defines equality as equality of conditions and means, not of comfort, and insists that justice requires equal rights and duties.

• Endnotes

  Proudhon argues that equality must be based on justice and strict right, not self-sacrifice, and critiques property for creating inequality.