Philosophy and Social Justice - Essay Example

Social Justice, Confucius and Hobbes Teacher               Social Justice, Confucius and Hobbes The just society is one which does not have a wide gap between the rich and the poor, no unemployment, no domestic violence and no racism. This just society is in fact almost the opposite of the kind of society that the United States has. Moreover, this can be achieved through the philosophy of Confucius and certainly not through that of Hobbes. My idea of a just society is perhaps what most people would simply wish for – a society without poverty or at least with around 90% of people living above the poverty line and one where the 10% poor are being taken care of. Money is such an important thing nowadays no matter what bad things people would say against it. Nevertheless, what makes money more difficult is the selfishness among people. The gap between the rich and the poor is growing wider and wider because of such selfishness, I believe. Therefore, it is not only a society with people who are financially stable that I envision but one with people who share their wealth with each other. The just society is also a society where domestic violence is either nonexistent or not an issue at all. Moreover, it is a society where the employment rate is at a minimum like 0.01% or even nothing. Also, it is a society where racism does not exist in any of its forms, against Hispanics or Asians or Blacks. There would be no domestic violence, no unemployment and certainly no racism if there is kindness and no selfishness towards each other. Domestic violence, I believe, happens only when people do not listen to each other and remain relentless in opposing each other’s opinions. Unemployment usually happens when employers do not give a chance to people who are mere undergraduates to prove themselves at work, or when there is no one who y helps others get a job. A just society is not one where people would only selfishly think that each one should struggle for himself. A just society is where people struggle not only for themselves but for others as well. Lastly, racism only exists if there is a selfish view that one’s race is more superior to another. In short, the just society that I imagine is one without selfishness. The philosophy of Confucius is the means to achieve my idea of a just society. According to Confucius, “If [the people] be led by virtue, and uniformity sought to be given them by the rules of propriety, they will have the sense of honor and respect, and moreover will become good” (Chaffee, 2011). This philosophy known as ethical humanism is one where what is being drawn out is the natural kindness in people. This philosophy is based on the idea of Ren, “a humane principle rooted in empathy and feeling for others” (Chaffee, 2011). This means that society operates by learning the rules of propriety. If such rules are learned, what happens is that the people who learn these rules naturally develop honor and respect for themselves and for each other. If this philosophy of Confucius is taught to and instilled in the youth of the society, this society will most likely become what is ideally just. If the rules of propriety are taught to the youth, they will naturally develop honor and respect for each other and for themselves, thus their Ren is naturally drawn out. The natural kindness in them is naturally drawn out and they will naturally become kind to their fellowmen. The direct consequences of such kindness will be the sharing of wealth and of everything else that is good. This is based on the idea that what one desires for oneself is naturally the same thing that he desires for others. This sharing of wealth and sharing of time will then inspire people to help each other find jobs and no one will be left unemployed or starving. Moreover, as kindness rules all relationships, there will be no domestic violence and no racism. Everyone accepts each other’s views and no one thinks his race is superior to those of others. Once more, this is based on the idea that what one desires for oneself, i.e. acceptance, is naturally the same thing that one desires for others. There is no room for selfishness. Lastly, what is good about this philosophy is that since everyone cares for each other and for himself, then no one asks too much because no one wants to be asked too much either. Hence, there is moderation in this society. In the United States, the society is a far cry from my own idea of a just society. Here in the United States, there is poverty and it can be overwhelming even if there were no statistics. According to McQuillan (2012), “The income gap between rich and poor people grew to the widest in more than 40 years in 2011” and that there are no signs of improvement at all. Domestic violence is also very much present and affects “nearly 1.3 million women and about 835,000 men” in the country every year, and the worst part is that 3 million children witness such violence every year (Shocking Domestic Violence Statistics From Laws.com, 2012). Only God knows how many of these children would not do the same thing when they grow up. Moreover, unemployment rate is at 7.9% as of January 2013 and it remains “essentially unchanged” (Fontes, 2013). This could be the source of several crimes too. Lastly, racism, although not statistically defined, is the reason why even President Obama slandered America in his 2007 speech on Hurricane Katrina (Mirengoff, 2012). The American society is indeed a far cry from the idea of a just society that I imagine. A theory that somehow has a different view from my own idea of a just society and from what Confucius said was the one developed by Thomas Hobbes. According to Hobbes, “The social community is essentially a collection of hostile and untrustworthy individuals,” and that in order to maintain peace among these brutes, people should agree to a “social contract” but “still retain the right to defend themselves against any and all attacks from their fellow citizens” (Chaffee, 2011). This society is therefore one which is based on fear. Moreover, laws should be instituted to control the people and the society or else everyone will naturally go for “wealth, power and glory” (Chaffee, 2011). Unlike the Confucian society where human kindness is the basis for the relationships among people, Hobbes’ society relies on strict laws and a social contract that somehow externally maintains the peace among people and their relationships. The danger in this society is if people stopped trusting their laws and just simply recognized that their own selves and their own sentiments are greater than these laws and the social contract. In that case, they would naturally destroy each other, the society and themselves as well. This would never happen in a society where the desire to do good is rather innate and does not need any external social contract for one to do it. References Chaffee, J. (2011). The Philosopher’s Way: A Text with Readings: Thinking Critically about Profound Ideas. 3rd ed. Boston, MA: Prentice Hall. Fontes, N. (2013). United States Unemployed Rate at 7.9%, Payroll Employment Rises. Retrieved from Trading Economics: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/united-states/unemployment-rate McQuillan, M. (2012). US Poverty Rate Stays at Almost Two Decade High: Income Falls. Retrieved from Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-12/u-s-poverty-rate-stays-at-almost-two-decade-high-income-falls.html Mirengoff, P. (2012). Obama Slandered America as Racist Using Dishonest Claims about the Response to Hurricane Katrina. Retrieved from Powerline: http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2012/10/obama-slandered-american-as-racist-using-dishonest-claims-about-the-response-to-hurricane-katrina.php Shocking Domestic Violence Statistics From Laws.com. (2012). Retrieved from PRWeb: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/10/prweb10041870.htm Read More