Forschungskolleg Humanwissenschaften

Andrew Mason

Professor of Political Theory, University of Warwick

Resident at the Forschungskolleg Humanwissenschaften:

January‒April 2016

Research topic at the Forschungskolleg Humanwissenschaften:

»Appearance, Charm and Injustice«

Project outline:

There is evidence that those who are perceived as attractive tend to earn larger incomes than those who are similarly qualified but regarded as less attractive. When a person’s attractiveness derives not merely from their looks but also from their charm or sense of humour, they may also find their lives go better in other ways, for example, it may be easier for them to make friends or find life-partners. Should this be a matter of concern from the point of view of justice?

The conventional answer is that friendships and sexual relationships do not fall under the remit of justice, and that in the economic sphere, injustices arise only if selectors are biased in favour of the attractive. An investigation of these claims promises to shed light not only on theories of justice, but also on the predicament of those who experience disadvantage as a result of lacking good looks or charm. If, as some believe, it is unfair for a person to be worse off through no fault of her own, then friendships and sexual relationships will come within the purview of justice when access to these »goods« is affected by factors such as looks, charm, or a sense of humour that are largely beyond a person's control.

The issues I am raising challenge our views on the scope of the concept of justice, and provide a new perspective on familiar theories of justice. (Andrew Mason)

Funding of the stay:

»Justitia Amplificata. Rethinking Justice − Applied and Global«

Scholarly profile of Andrew Mason

Andrew Mason joined Department for Politics and International Studies (PaIS) at Warwick University in 2012. He has previously held positions at the Universities of Southampton, Reading, Hull, St Andrews and Oxford.
At present he is co-Principal Investigator in the project »Faith Schooling: Principles and Policies« funded by the Spencer Foundation. Please find more information about the project here.

Main areas of research:

Contemporary Political Theory; Theories of Citizenship; Multiculturalism; Theories of Justice and Legitimacy

Selected publications:

»Justice, Feasiblity and Ideal Theory: A Pluralist Approach«, in: Social Philosophy and Policy, Vol. 33 (1-2), 2016. (DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0265052516000388)
»Appearance, Discrimination, and Reaction Qualiﬁcations«, in: The Journal of Political Philosophy, Vol. 00 (00), 2016. (DOI: 10.1111/jopp.12099)
(edited with C. Armstrong), Democratic Citizenship and Its Futures, London: Routledge, 2013.
Living Together as Equals: The Demands of Citizenship, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.
Levelling the Playing Field: The Idea of Equal Opportunity and Its Place in Egalitarian Thought, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006.
(edited with R. Bellamy), Political Concepts, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2003.
Community, Solidarity and Belonging: Levels of Community and Their Normative Significance, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
Explaining Political Disagreement, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993.

Andrew Mason

Scholarly profile of Andrew Mason

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