Introduction

Abstract

This book sets out the theory of ‘egalitarian rights recognition’, building on a novel combination of aspects of the work of Thomas Hill Green and Hannah Arendt. The book makes three key arguments. First, human rights must be grounded in social recognition, rather than in the innate qualities of the human. Second, rights recognition requires a serious commitment to equality; egalitarian rights recognition provides a critical lens through which the problems of rights recognised in situations of inequality can be more clearly seen. Third, human rights, if grounded by egalitarian social recognition, are important for human freedom and flourishing.