Between Statism and Cosmopolitanism: Hegel and the Possibility of Global Justice

Strictly speaking, Hegel pays relatively scant attention to the subject of global justice. Our duties as citizens extend to our state, but not to citizens in other states. There is reason to believe that Hegel’s stated views on international affairs offer little help to those of us interested in developing theories of global justice. In this essay, I argue that while Hegel’s stated views on this subject may be problematic, there are resources within his philosophy for developing a compelling understanding of global justice located in an interesting space between statist and cosmopolitan theories of global justice. Thus, while Hegel’s understanding of global justice has its limitations, a Hegelian understanding of global justice has much promise. Global justice theorists should be encouraged to pursue the latter project. 4.