The Right to Private Property

Presenting a comprehensive, critical examination of the claim that private property is one of the fundamental rights of humankind, Waldron here contrasts two types of arguments about rights: those based on historical entitlement, and those based on the importance of property for freedom. He illustrates this contrast with a detailed discussion of the theories of property found in Locke's Second Treatise and Hegel's Philosophy of Rights, and offers original analyses of the concept of ownership, the idea of rights, and the relation between property and equality, finding that traditional arguments about property yield some surprisingly radical conclusions.

Can the right to private property be claimed as one of the `rights of mankind'? This is the central question of this comprehensive and critical examination of the subject of private property. Jeremy Waldron contrasts two types of arguments about rights: those based on historical entitlement, and those based on the importance of property to freedom. He provides a detailed discussion of the theories of property found in Locke's Second Treatise and Hegel's Philosophy of Right to illustrate this contrast. The book contains original analyses of the concept of ownership, the ideas of rights, and the relation between property and equality. The author's overriding determination throughout is to follow through the arguments and values used to justify private ownership. He finds that the traditional arguments about property yield some surprisingly radical conclusions.

Part 1: The Framework: Introduction; What is private property?; Right-based arguments; Special rights and general rights; Part II: The arguments: Arguing for property; Locke's discussion of property; Historical entitlement: some difficulties; General-right-based arguments for private property; The Proudhon Strategy; Hegel's discussion of property; Self-ownership and the opportunity to appropriate; Property for all; Bibliography; Index