Meritocracy

Grad students enroll in 276M. A meritocracy is a society in which influence (of some sort) is possessed on the basis of merit (whatever that means). Meritocracy is of perennial interest and has shaped - for good or ill - political, economic, and cultural life in the East and the West. In this course we will consider questions such as: What is merit? What is it for someone to deserve something? What is it for people to have equal or adequate opportunities? Are meritocratic arrangements justified? What are the main objections to meritocratic arrangements?