AN EXPOSÉ OF THE “IDEA OF PUBLIC REASON†IN JOHN RAWLS' POLITICAL LIBERALISM

Abstract

In his Political Liberalism (1993), John Rawls attempts to deal with the problem of political power in a modern democratic society with his idea of public reason, which provides a systematic answer to the question: What moral (not legal) limits does civility impose on public political debates and discussions by the citizens of a modern pluralist democracy? At the heart of the problem is that citizens in a modern democratic society, such as Nigeria, do not hold one but different and often conflicting comprehensive conceptions of the good (life) which they cherish and want to espouse. A central proposition of Rawls' thought in resolving the problem is that respect for others as free and equal citizens of a democracy entails that we accept a principle of equal liberty that allows each conception of the good life to thrive in the society. This paper exposed and interrogated Rawls' propositions and claims in order to see the relevance of this thought in today's modern democratic society. Through the use of historical and analytic methods, this paper found that, based on the fact of pluralism, it is reasonable for Rawls to suggest that to achieve social and political stability in a democratic society, there are certain types of reasons that citizens may and may not adduce to defend their points of view in public political debates, i.e., political discussions must be based on values that other citizens can reasonably be expected to accept and endorsed. The conclusion is that Rawls' idea of public reason is a commendable effort towards ensuring social justice, political stability and peaceful co-existence of citizens in a modern liberal constitutional democratic regime.