The Need for More than Justice

By Annette Baier

REVIEW QUESTIONS:

1)    Distinguish between justice and care perspectives. According to Gilligan, how do these perspectives develop?

Justice perspective means adhering to laws, rules and regulations of the society. While, care perspective means the love, care and etc. Males are more on justice perspective, while female tends to focus on care perspective. These perspectives were developed through moral development which focuses on the development of female and male. As the female and male grows, they have seen that these perspectives are visible in our lives.

2)    Explain Kohlberg’s theory of moral development. What criticisms do Gilligan and Baier make of this theory?

Kohlberg’s theory of moral development starts from pre-conventional level to a post-conventional. The example would be when we were starting to went to school and we tried to fit in the community. In order for that child to fit in the group, he used to answer the tests and exams. Gilligan and Baier find out that Kohlberg’s questionnaires are mostly verbal. Thus, it can be fictional. Gilligan believed that the development of female and male are different with each other. Gilligan find out that female’s idea about morality is different with males. They conclude that females are more matured by way of realizing care perspective rather than justice perspective.

3)    Baier says that there are three important differences between Kantian liberals and their critics. What are these differences?

The important differences between Kantian liberals and their critics have seen in the chapter. The first was the relationship between equals. The power of the parent and child is different since they should not be equal. But now, we consider teenagers like adults since in some countries, if a child is 18 years old, he or she should be independent from her family. Second is its freedom of choice. It is said that a child can’t choose his family just because she has the freedom of choice. Gilligan find out that women tried to choose if she will abort his child or not and enter to being a mother. Last is the authority over emotions. A parent should not strictly imposed rules if the child can’t follow it.

4)    Why does Baier attack the Kantian view that the reason should control unruly passion?

Baier believed that we should not worry about the passions the person have, as long as they can control it. Kantian’s view is that unruly passion tends to less useful when we fill the role of being a parent. It is said that being a father, they should control their violence by way of loving their children. For example, the child failed in the test, the parents especially the father should control even though his focus is on the legal sense. Kantian theories on controlling emotions, rather than on growing desirable emotions are the challenged that Baier wants to attack.

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

1)    What does Baier mean when she speaks of the need “to transvalue the values of our patriarchal past”? Do new values replace the old ones? If so, then do we abandon the old values of justice, freedom, and rights?

Based on how I understood it, it means that to replace our values in the past, we should replace with the new value that is based on morality. I don’t think we can’t abandon the values of justice, freedom and rights. I can say that we just replace it by way of improving the values of the old justice, freedom and rights.

2)    What is wrong with the Kantian view that extends equal rights to all rational beings, including women and minorities? What would Baier says? What do you think?

Kantian view is wrong in a way that they don’t believe on equalities. I believed that males and females should be equal. Baier also believed that female should be given opportunity same with males.

3)    Baier seems to reject the Kantian emphasis on freedom of choice. Granted, we do not choose our parents, but still don’t we have freedom of choice about many things, and isn’t this very important. Definitely, we have freedom of choice. But I think when morality comes to our life like abortion of our child is still I consider as immoral since a person should be responsible for her action. I believed that we have choice on things which does not have conflicts with morality. But if there is conflict, we should do the right thing to do. Freedom of choice is vital in our lives. That is why we should decide on the right thing to do.