Les conceptions américaine, canadienne-anglaise et canadienne-française de l'idée d'égalité

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to confirm that there are different conceptions of equality in the United States, English Canada, and French Canada.Beginning with the Aristotelian distinction between numerical equality and proportional equality, the article establishes first a typology for the concept of equality. A review of the literature on the subject reveals that Americans and English Canadians can be said to be partial to proportional equality while French Canadians favour numerical equality.It is then demonstrated that Von Neumann's and Morgenstern's theory of games can be interpreted as an egalitarian theory since the non-discriminatory solution proposed by Von Neumann and Morgenstern corresponds exactly to a proportional division of the stakes according to the strategic importance given to each of the players by the characteristic function of the game.A series of tests conducted in Quebec and the US and utilizing a three-party game invented by Riker reveals that French Canadians take a numerical-egalitarian stance while Americans and English Canadians play according to a proportional-egalitarian model.Finally, the results are analysed to try to find the possible reasons for the difference.