a Anyone wanting a lucid and accessible example of state--of--the--art political philosophy need look no further. In brief compass, Paul Kelly sets out an idea of liberal equality for our times, explains its rationale and defends it against a wide variety of challenges. I dona t know how he managed to accomplish all this in a short book -- I know it would have been beyond me.a ----Professor Brian Barry, Lieber Professor of Political Philosophy, Columbia University a This is a first--rate introduction to the philosophy and politics of contemporary liberal thought. Kelly offers more than a careful and concise statement of liberal egalitarianism. He also traces its historical roots, explains its many attractions, and rebuts fashionable but misplaced objections to it. ----Dr Matthew Clayton, Department of Politics & International Studies, University of Warwick a This accessible little book in Politya s Key Concepts series is a broad introduction to recent work in political theory. As such, it provides useful background for other writing on liberalism. But it is no dry textbook; it has a distinct point of view. Kelly, who is a professor of political theory at the London School of Economics and Political Science, defends a particular type of liberalism: egalitarian liberalism, which he believes has two core principles. Philosophically, it is committed to the basic substantive value of equal personhood; politically, it attempts to secure the rights and economic resources necessary to protect equal personhood. a Kellya s liberal heroes are a broadly Americanized bunch ---- (the early) John Rawls, Ronald Dworkin, and Brian Barry ---- and he defends his heroes from attacks on both the left and the right. To those on the right who argue that the egalitarian liberala s emphasis on equality unduly restricts our freedom to accumulate wealth, Kelly replies that property is not a pre--political right that overrides the concerns of social justice. To those on the left who claim that liberal egalitarianism is merely cultural imperialism in disguise, Kelly distinguishes between respecting a culturea s practices ---- which clearly makes sense ---- and saying that we can never criticize such practices in light of general principles ---- which is self--defeating. Liberal principles avoid lapsing into moral subjectivism, Kelly says. Ita s time for liberals to stand up and articulate them.a ---- Michael P. Lynch, in The Chronicle of Higher Education, April 22, 2005, page 22. Lynch is associate professor of philosophy at the University of Connecticut. a [C]risp and elegant defence of liberalisma ----Times Higher Education Supplement a Liberalism offers an erudite and stimulating defence of liberalism as both a philosophical and a political project, and is a valuable addition to the existing scholarship.a ----The Philosophical Quarterly
