第378页 平等主义的症结

This is why the notion of evaluation is crucial for the functioning of democratic so-
ciety:if,at the level of their symbolic identity,all subjects are equal;if,here,un sujet vaut
l’autre; if they can be indefinitely substituted for one another,since each of them is re-
duced to an empty punctual place (S /), to a “man without qualities-properties” (to
recall the title of Robert Musil’s magnum opus)—if,consequently,every reference to their
properly symbolic mandate is prohibited—how, then, are they to be distributed
within the social edifice, how can their occupation be legitimized? The answer is, of
course,evaluation: one has to evaluate—as objectively as possible,and through all pos-
sible means,from quantified testing of their abilities to more “personalized”in-depth
interviews—their potential.The underlying ideal notion is to produce their charac-
terization deprived of all traces of symbolic identities. Furthermore, egalitarianism
itself should never be accepted at face value: the notion (and practice) of egalitarian
justice,insofar as it is sustained by envy,relies on the inversion of the standard renun-
ciation accomplished to benefit others:“I am ready to renounce it,so that others will
(also) not (be able to) have it!”