Reading Rawls’s Original Position via Kant’s Theory of Autonomy

J. Rawls is the most prominent political philosopher in 20th century. Hehas two periods in his works and thoughts. Kant has influenced him onfirst period which is evolved in A Theory of Justice. Kant claims thathuman being is autonomous, thus every person based on his reasonmakes choices. The person ought to act only based on his principleswhich are made choice by himself. In Kant, person’s decision fallowingthe desire, rather fallowing the reason which is a clear example ofheteronomous. Rawls, in A Theory of Justice, introduces the initialposition in which any person is ignorance of his interests. The principleof justice is determined via this position. The person who is in Rawlsinitial position and veil of ignorance is similar with Kantianautonomous person. Both of them, once, would make decision onprinciples of justice consider the conditions such as: neutrality, freefrom interest, autonomy; all in all, in two theories, the principle isselected by rational agents and such agents follow the laws which areselected by themselves.