Anarchy, State and Utopia

In the Preface of Anarchy, State, and Utopia, Robert Nozick announces one of the book’s central themes: “the nature of the state, its legitimate functions and its justifications” in relation to individual rights (ix). His premise is that individuals have inalienable rights that limit what others, including the state, can do to them. In the Preface, Nozick also presents the main conclusions of his book:

[A] minimal state, limited to the narrow functions of protection against force, theft, fraud, enforcement of contracts, and so on, is justified; that any more extensive state will violate persons’ rights not to be forced to do certain things, and is unjustified; and that the minimal state is inspiring as well as right (ix).

Nozick addresses how he acquired his libertarian views, which favor a minimal state and oppose coercive state actions for wealth redistribution or personal protection. He acknowledges that others may find his ideas controversial and off-putting. He admits that he himself was initially reluctant to accept these views but was eventually persuaded by various arguments and considerations, which he presents in the book. Part 1 argues against the anarchist belief that a state is inherently violent and immoral. Nozick argues that a state can arise from anarchy and without rights violations.