Necessary Goods

Do any needs defensibly make claims on anyone? If so, which needs and whose needs can defensibly do this? What are the grounds for our responsibilities to meet others' needs, when we have such responsibilities? The distinguished contributors to this volume consider these questions as they evaluate the moral force of needs. They approach questions of obligation and moral importance from a variety of different theoretical perspectives, including contractarian, Kantian, Aristotelian, rights-based, egalitarian, liberal, and libertarian perspectives. Much contemporary discourse about moral and political matters employs the language of needs; Necessary Goods is an important book for philosophers and political theorists tackling the ever-present problem of our responsibilities towards others. Contributors: John Baker, David Braybrooke, Gillian Brock, David Copp, Len Doyal, Harry Frankfurt, Robert Goodin, Charles Jones, Martha Nussbaum, Onora O'Neill, James Sterba, David Wiggins.