ABSTRACT
An egalitarian moral view must make certain choices in formulating principles to explain our particular egalitarian judgments. The first choice concerns the form of the egalitarian principle, the particular way in which it differs from a principle simply telling us to maximize what is good across all lives. One kind of egalitarianism aims at equality between different lives. It uses a measure of inequality and requires us to minimize the inequality recorded by the measure. A second kind of egalitarianism gives priority to helping those who are badly off. This view has a tendency toward equality, but not because it believes that equality itself has value. It furthers equality because that will be the result of helping the badly off, and it believes that improving a bad life takes priority over improving better lives. I will use “maximin egalitarianism” as a general name for this kind of view, even though some of the principles it covers are not exclusively concerned with the interests of the very worst off. A third version of egalitarianism believes that everyone should receive at least a specified minimum share of advantages or benefits. It could be called “minimum entitlement egalitarianism.”
