Dependency in Justice: Can Rawlsian Liberalism Accommodate Kittay's Dependency Critique?

In: Hypatia: a journal of feminist philosophy, Volume 25, Issue 1, p. 140-156

Abstract

This essay assesses the compatibility of Eva Kittay's dependency critique with Rawlsian political liberalism. I argue for the inclusion of a modified version of Kittay's revisions within Rawlsian theory in order to yield a theory that supports much of dependency work. Beyond these selected changes, however, I argue that Kittay's other proposed changes should not be included because they are incompatible with Rawls, and furthermore, their incorporation does not yield a theory that includes utter dependents.