Evaluating Culture

Matthew Johnson is a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of York, UK working in political philosophy on issues of cultural diversity and human wellbeing, specifically with regard to physically invasive practices. He has written on such topics as contemporary Marxism, circumcision, and the thought of John Gray, and has previously taught at Newcastle University, the University of Queensland and the University of Iceland.

List of Illustrations Note on the Author Acknowledgements Introduction 1. The Case Against Cultural Evaluation: Relativism, Culturalism and Romanticism  2. Needs, Goods and Self-actualization  3. Capabilities, Zero-sum Choices and Equality  4. What is Culture? What does it do? What should it do?  5. Circumstance, Materialism and Possibilism 6. Applying the Theory: Sources of Harm in Aboriginal Australian Communities Conclusion Endnotes Bibliography Index