The moral and political status of children : new essays

## Abstract There is a trend towards taking children seriously as distinct subjects of moral and political theory who have complex and evolving interests. Children are developing beings whose moral status gradually changes. This view is now generally accepted but its implications are variously understood. It is no longer possible to assume a simple harmony between the interests of children and those charged with the responsibility of rearing them. Indeed, the challenge is to deepen our understanding of children's interest and to explore how the conceptualization of these interests affects the character of the moral claims they have. This book addresses various dimensions of this challenge. Although the precise emphasis in each chapter varies, the overall collection is animated by a concern with four principal interrelated but distinguishable themes. These are rights, autonomy, education, and distributive justice. The book contains contributions from thirteen distinguished moral and political philosophers on the subject of children. These are new essays and are devoted to a subject that until recently has not been extensively discussed by philosophers. Too often philosophers restrict themselves to the consideration only of the relations between adults. Yet the topic of children is an important one for moral and political philosophy. Recent years have seen an increased concern with the needs and interests of young people. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which accords a wide range of fundamental rights to children was adopted in 1989 and many states have subsequently ratified the Convention. In this context it is timely and appropriate to ask various questions. If children do not have rights what exactly is their moral status? If they do have rights do they have all the rights that adults have? What rights if any do parents have over children and what is their justification? What duties do parents have towards their own children and towards others in society? How should we educate those who will be the future citizens and workers of our society? What values and what dispositions of character is it appropriate to instil in children? Is the family an obstacle to the realisation of full social justice? Can we in pursuit of justice contemplate the abolition of the family? The book covers the themes of children's rights, parental rights and duties, the family and justice, and civic education. The book contains contributions from thirteen distinguished moral and political philosophers on the subject of children. These are new essays and are devoted to a subject that until recently has not been extensively discussed by philosophers. Too often philosophers restrict themselves to the consideration only of the relations between adults. Yet the topic of children is an important one for moral and political philosophy. Recent years have seen an increased concern with the needs and interests of young people. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which accords a wide range of fundamental rights to children was adopted in 1989 and many states, including the United States and the UK, have subsequently ratified the Convention. In an edited collection of contributions from a number of distinguished philosophers the subject of children is discussed from the perspectives of moral and political philosophy. The key issue they address is if children have no rights then what is their moral status The book contains original essays by distinguished moral and political philosophers on the topic of the moral and political status of children. It covers the themes of children's rights, parental rights and duties, the family and justice, and civic education. Feminist philosophers and historians of ideas rightly point out in criticism of the canon that women do not really figure within the classic texts of moral and political philosophy.