Jan Kandiyali

What is the relationship between liberalism and socialism? Partisans of each political tradition often focus on the shortcomings of the other, with socialists charging liberals with defending merely formal ideas of freedom, which lead them to a naïve defence of the status quo, while liberals often view socialists as excessively utopian, and as blind to the ways in which collective forms of economic organisation can lead to oppression. This article examines the prospects for a more eirenic understanding of the relationship between liberalism and socialism, by means of examining the significance of the main points of contention between canonical representatives of each tradition, Rawls and Marx. By examining questions relating to the limits of liberal rights, the problems of alienation and self-realisation in work, the place of distributive principles in socialist views, and the possibility of a society beyond justice, the article defends a partial reconciliation between these two traditions.

Marx’s vision of unalienated production is often thought to be subject to decisive objections. This article argues that these objections rely on a misinterpretation of Marx’s position. It provides a new interpretation of Marx’s vision of unalienated production. Unlike another well-known account, it suggests that unalienated production involves realizing oneself through providing others with the goods and services they need for their self-realization. It argues that this view is appealing and that it offers a more successful response to objections than previous interpretations. In doing so, it hopes to put Marx’s concern with alienation and nonalienation back on the table.