Justice, Law And Punishment Flashcards
Justice Quote
“Justice is fairness, equal opportunities for all to make something of their lives, and a way back from the deaths for those who fail”
Justice
Concept-we all have rights (e.g. Divine, natural, contractual) and these must be fulfilled in order to have justice
If they are taken away-there must be punishment to carry on justice
Plato’s ideas of justice
Justice is in the interest of the strongest.
Wanted a society without self-interest.
Laws are imposed because the strongest are in charge-they are backed up by the authority of the ruler.
Plato’s system
The philosophical King (the reasoned individual)
⬆️
The soldier (the willed individual)
⬆️
The worker (the unjust man governed by his appetite
Hume
Not possible to form a justice system based on what people deserve, since it is impossible to agree about what we each deserve
There could never be a “justice of equality” since people are unequal in what they have
Inequality comes from accident of birth
Types of Equality
Fundamental-where all people are treated as equals by the government+the legal systems
Social-where all people have the right to vote and stand in public office
Equal treatment for equals-treating people of the same group in the same way
Unequal treatment in special circumstance-someone in a different situation who may need special treatment
Augustine
“Equality must be something other than treating everyone in the same way since everyone is different”
Marx
The state could attempt to balance the inequalities by taxing the wealthy more heavily+using the money to provide better educational facilities tax the rich
Colson
Justice is characterised by the society it is part of-
“A society has a foundation for justice when it observes a rule of law grounded in objective truth”
Law+justice gain moral authority by including on objective standard of justice applicable to all humans.
We need authority because if law is without it-the notions of justice will suffer
Social contract
Laws are created+imposed by the state
Generally the state offers freedom and peace in return for obedience
Social contract
Hobbes
Society requires a social contract to operate.
The ruler acts as protector-guaranteeing rights.
The people live under that rule which is absolute
The ruler has to be above the law if the rule of law is to be preserved
Social contract
Locke
People have to give up some of their individual rights to the community
However he felt absolute authority lay not with the ruler, but with the institutions of state
Individuals have rights which the government have to protect
Social contract
Rousseau
Social contract guarantees individual liberty
The Sc involves people and rulers working in partnership to their mutual benefit
Rights and duties
A key aspect of Justice is the principle of rights and duties.
People are moral agents+they have duties+rights e.g. Thing they ought to do (duties) and ought to receive (ought not to kill+should in turn not be killed)
Without these rights and duties there can be no justice
5 types of rights
Divine-given by God Natural-come from human nature Contractual-agreed rights Utilitarian-respecting+being respected Totalitarian-exercised as long as the state permits
