What Is Justice in My Neighborhood - Essay Example

Justice is the act of fairness to all mankind. Justice has been defined in a different sphere from political concepts to social justice. The word justice is derived from a Latin word jus, which means right or law (Pomerleau). Moreover, the English Dictionary defines Justice as the actions of doing what is morally accepted in the society and to give every person his or her due. Philosophers have done more than explaining what justice meant by demonstrating its application in the society. They have gone beyond entomology to talk more on the nature of justice as a moral virtue and desirability in correcting political thinking and ethical decision making. One of the major philosophers on justice is Socrates. He defined what the Western philosophers have quoted in their work of justice in the modern society. Socrates argued that justice is an inherent character that people ought to have, but they have rather corrupted their mind for selfish interest. Justice is the installation of rational order and the respect of individual rights. Socrates ideas about justice was written by Plato whom he mentored and defended his cause for a fairer society. Therefore, the ideas of Socrates are outlined by Plato and there is no distinction of Socrates philosophy and that of Plato. In Plato’s works on Gorgias, Socrates argues that a person does not derive happiness from being delivered from evil, but rather happiness comes out of never exercising evil (Davis). Socrates draws an analogy of a sick person. He argues that only the sick that goes to seek a cure, but those that are healthy are always happy than the sick. Therefore, it is those who commit a crime that need a cure for their habits. Punishments for people who commit crime thus function as a cure for human misbehaviours. Socrates argued that a punishment serves to bring justice to the offender and the offended parties (Davis). Socrates argued as healthy are happier that people cured of illness, so do people who are straight happier that people who received punishment or justice for their actions. According to Socrates, life is miserable for a person who life a corrupted life. Such a person is never happy though he or she may evade justice. Though he may think that he or she lives a worthy life, it amount to self inflicting injuries and hesitation to seek for cure. Socrates likens such a person with a child who s fearfully of taking medicine. According to Socrates people ought to seek justice to cure society of injustices, corruption, disorder and other evil acts to ensure that there are fairness and justice. Therefore, justice ensures that people have purposeful life (Davis). In the Republic, Socrates discusses the role of justice in the society. He argues that justice discourages people from engaging in an evil act and also ensures that the moral value in the society is enhanced. Socrates says ‘it is just to do good to those that do well and to harm those that do evil’ (Davis). He argued that harming oneself by engaging in evil acts is worse than receiving harm to discourage self infliction of pain. Though a just live has a price to pay for enduring loss and suffering, it is worth to live because choosing the alternative way of unjust and pleasure corrupts the soul. Socrates says that ‘better a poor man with a good and just soul than an unjust wealthy man who has acquired his wealth through vice and thus has a tainted soul’ (Davis). In the Apology, Socrates is a victim of injustice (Plato). He spent his entire life advocating for people to be just and to engage in injustices. Moreover, Socrates says that people should not fail to do well and just to fellow men. He argues that injustice is not only doing wrong, but also failures to observe and do what is right (Kamtekar 66). In his defence Socrates says that he engages in philosophy because his superiors, the Appolonian oracle ordered him to do so. Therefore, he says that doing otherwise would be doing injustices to his superiors. He believed that his mortal and immortal being ordered him to engage in a just course no matter the challenges he faced he choose the right path in his life. Socrates believed in his convictions, and this is demonstrated by his sentencing and ultimate death. According to him, a just person must pay the price for what they stand for. Moreover, Socrates says that it is hard for a human being to avoid wickedness than death. He believes that the unwritten laws in Athens are corrupted and defied to conform to them. Socrates challenges the authority in Athens by telling the youth that they should think for themselves because it was a just way to do so than abide by the ignorance of those in power. Socrates believed that justice can only be achieved in Athens by invoking emancipations among the people. However, he died for the course of justice in an unjust sentencing (Kamtekar 68). Though the philosophy of Socrates and Plato have influenced the Western democracy, people still faces injustices from state authorities and powerful people who influence evil action to pursue personal ambitions. However, people are knowledgeable of their right more than the Athenians during Socrates’ and Plato era. The cry for justice resulted to the institutionalization of the justice system and rehabilitation centre. Socrates ideas on punishment have been abided to, but drawn criticism because rather than ensuring that evil doers are discouraged, Socrates argued for punishment. If a person killed another person, Socrates would argue that such a person should be killed (Plato). However, there are other better ways of instilling the justice in the society other than punishment. In 1779, for example, the British Government established the Penitentiary Act, which ensured that prisoners were not only punished with imprisonment, but are rehabilitated (Ministry of Justice). In today’s society, justice is met through vocational training, education and punishment for the greatest offenders. Advocates of rehabilitation argue that the psychological correction of criminals functions better than punishment. Therefore, Socrates ideas of inflicting pain and suffering to evil doers are no longer viable. The criminal justice system has established Resettlement Programmes where offenders are looked after when their time in prison comes to an end (Ministry of Justice). It is argued that society needs to treat offenders in a human manner rather than despise and reject them from the communities. Moreover, the rights of the human being ought to be respected, and thus offenders should be treated while ensuring their rights are not violated (Raynor 5). It is also argued that the concentration of offenders in prison only helps in furthering the behaviours of criminals. The punishment of the imprisonment end making an offender worse that he was before joining prison. The department of investigation in the U.S has documented that serious crime is committed by second or recurring offenders. Other than the philosophy of Socrates and Plato, religion defines justice differently as an act of forgiveness and love. The major religions in the world teach on the role of forgiveness in meeting justice. Moreover, different communities treat their deviants in different ways. Some community meets justice by ensuring that the offender’s offers support to the victim in monetary term or by providing service. Justice is an important topic from the ancient time until now in the 21st Century. Human being has to overcome the social challenges of injustices to ensure that people live in harmony and the reward of individual effort is never taken from him. Justice should define the human course of doing well and just to all people. Work Cited Davis, J. Socrates: The Search of Justice. Web. Richeast.org. 2000. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. < http://www.richeast.org/htwm/Greeks/Socrates/Index.html>. Kamtekar, Rachana. Ethics and Politics in Socrates’ defence of justice. Web. Arizona.edu. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. < http://www.u.arizona.edu/~kamtekar/papers/EthicsPoliticsProofs.pdf>. Ministry of Justice. Prison Rehabilitation. Web. Politics.co.uk. 2012. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. < http://www.politics.co.uk/reference/prison-rehabilitation>. Plato. “Work by Plato: Gorgias.” Trans. Benjamin Jowett. Web. Mit.edu. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. < http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/gorgias.html> Pomerleau, Wayne. Western Theories of Justice. Web. Utm.edu. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. < http://www.iep.utm.edu/justwest/>. Raynor, Peter. Why Help Offenders? Argument for Rehabilitation As A penal Strategy. European Journal of Probation University of Bucharest. Vol. 1, No. 1, 2009, pp 3 – 20 Plato. The Apology. Introduction. Web. Adelaide.edu. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. < http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/p/plato/p71ap/introduction.html#apology>. Read More