Danny Dorling Definition Of Equality

Equality is an abstract contested concept due to the nature of the word. Equality has been debated throughout history and has two main definitions, one of which will be discussed in this exercise. Some see equality as equality of opportunity and others see it as equality of resources or skills. definition of equality that I have used, more directly relates with equality of opportunity. The definition of equality for use in this exercise is by Danny Dorling and is defined as;
‘Equality means being afforded the same right, dignity and freedoms as other people. These include rights to access resources, the dignity of being seen as able and the freedom to choose what to make of life on an equal footing with others.’
The first important point which
The main problem with this definition is that countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom under this definition would be considered two of the most equal societies in the modern world. However, the disparity of money and resources within the them suggests that these two countries are two of the most unequal in the modern world. Another key problem with the concept equality is since it is hard to achieve exact equality of resources or access of resources due to the nature of human beings as each case is subjective and not objective. This would lead to conceptual stretching as cases which are close to equality are bracketed into equality within a certain margin of error. This is because it is contested what is considered equality of opportunity, and how far before something is considered within a reasonable range to be in a state of equality. Conceptual stretching means that we make cases vague so it can be explain more cases. This is a flaw with this definition of the concept is it lacks clarity due to its subjectivity as it differs based on opinion. In contrast to equality of resources which is
This contrasts with the other definitions of equality which have been perceived as anti-liberal and anti-democratic. This extensive research and use of equality means that the concept has a sense of familiarity. It has developed what John Gerring calls a resonance, as it has become embedded within society with positive connotations. This resonance and familiarity has led to becoming one of the most popular ‘good’ concepts in the last few