Algemeen Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Wijsbegeerte - Volume 109, Issue 4, 2017

An Upper Limit on Wealth?

Should (extreme) wealth be seen as an undesirable situation? This question is called for by a number of social developments, but also from theories of justice in political philosophy and from economic ethics. Answering this question requires first and foremost a proper conceptualisation of wealth. In this paper, I propose such a conceptualisation. In addition, two reasons are advocated for an upper limit on wealth, and possible objections are investigated. The paper ends with some suggestions for future philosophical research on an upper limit on wealth.