William Godwin

British anarchist. Born into a middle-class family of devout Calvinist ministers, he developed a strong rebellious spirit against authority and a desire for spiritual freedom from an early age. He first became a minister, but soon became influenced by the French Encyclopedists and left the ministry to pursue a career as a writer. He subsequently wrote works in the fields of political thought, novels, history, and biographies, but became famous for his 1793 work An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice, and its influence on General Virtue and Happiness . In 1797, he married the feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, and had a daughter (Mary, who later became the poet Mrs. Shelley), but his wife died of puerperal fever. After remarrying in 1801, he ran a publishing business, but he was financially poor and completely forgotten by society.

In his main work, "Political Justice," he based his argument on a complete trust in human reason, arguing that harmony will be created if each person, following reason, eliminates selfishness and acts to promote the interests of society as a whole, and that such actions are just. He rejected private property because it prioritizes the personal interests of each individual, and dismissed governments that are premised on private property as the product of human ignorance and error. He envisioned a communist society in the future composed of small groups of individuals who are independent producers, and described an optimistic ideal society in which political institutions would become unnecessary if each person's rationality were enlightened, disputes would be resolved by temporary juries, and the institutions of marriage and family would also become unnecessary, influencing Owen and others.

[Motoko Oki]

"Political Justice (Property Theory)" translated by Atsushi Shirai (1971, Yojusha)" ▽ "Studies on William Godwin" by Atsushi Shirai, expanded edition (1972, Miraisha)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

イギリスの無政府主義者。中流の熱心なカルバン派牧師の家庭に生まれ、幼少期から権威に対する徹底的な反抗心と精神の自由への要求を抱く。初め牧師となったが、まもなくフランス百科全書派の影響を受けて牧師を辞め、文筆活動に入った。以後、政治思想、小説、歴史、伝記などの分野で著作を行うが、1793年に出版した『政治的正義』An Enquiry concerning Political Justice, and its influence on General Virtue and Happinessで一躍有名となった。1797年、女性解放論者メアリー・ウルストンクラフトと結婚、女児（のち詩人シェリー夫人となったメアリー）をもうけたが、妻は産褥熱(さんじょくねつ)で死亡した。1801年の再婚後は出版業などを営んだが、経済的にも困窮し社会からまったく忘れられた存在だった。

　主著の『政治的正義』では、人間の理性への全面的な信頼をベースに、各人が理性に従って利己心を滅却し、社会全体の利益促進のため行動すれば調和が生まれるし、そのような行動を正義だとしている。そして私有財産制度を、各人の個人的利益を最優先させるがゆえに否定し、私有財産制度を前提とする政府を、人類の無知と誤謬(ごびゅう)の産物として退ける。彼は未来に、独立した生産者である個人の小集団から構成される共産主義社会を構想し、各人の理性を啓蒙(けいもう)することによって政治制度は不要となり、紛争は非常設の陪審員が解決し、また結婚・家族制度も不要になる、と楽観的な理想社会を描き、オーエンらに影響を与えた。

［大木基子］

『白井厚訳『政治的正義（財産論）』（1971・陽樹社）』▽『白井厚著『ウィリアム・ゴドウィン研究』増補版（1972・未来社）』

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