Significance of Justice

705 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The importance of Justice

All civilizations require justice, the one fundamental requirement for any society. Nowhere is the value of justice portrayed more clearly than in William Shakespeare’s play, King Lear. King Lear is a cruel play, packed with human brutality and, seemingly, meaningless disasters. The lack of justice within the play causes these disasters. A society is often tempted to build its foundation on a simple concept such as mercy, but this simplicity is its flaw. On the other hand, justice is objective, which is why it is more important than mercy. First, not punishing people for their crimes is not an effective deterrent; they will just go right on committing these crimes. Furthermore, forgiveness often only benefits the forgiver by relieving them of anger, but does little to teach the perpetrator a lesson. Finally, commitment to justice is the only way to restore a situation to the way it should be. Shakespeare’s King Lear clearly portrays the fundamental societal truth that justice brings about proper resolution, whereas mercy is just a luxury that mankind can rarely afford; justice therefore is society’s highest value.
Justice is integral to society and only justice is a true deterrent to evil as it is required to punish people properly. In King Lear, Albany clearly points out the importance of justice when he is arguing with his rotten wife Goneril in Act IV. He says, “If that the heavens do not their visible spirits / Send quickly down to tame these vile offenses, / It will come, / Humanity must perforce prey on itself, / Like monsters of the deep” (IV ii 46-49). Albany speaks of the gods’ justice; without the gods interacting and bringing forth justice, everyone will turn on everyone else, and humans, “Like monsters of the deep” (I...

... middle of paper ...

...nt. Justice purges the world of evil elements and stops humans from continuing along a road of destruction. Forgiving people is a noteworthy concept when applied to individuals, but the sad reality is that mercy as a tool for societal control hardly ever works. Only justice can restore leadership and maintain the status quo, just as in King Lear where justice restored the best ruler for the people. Justice, not mercy, allows all of society to be safe and secure and go about living better lives. King Lear clearly shows us that justice is supreme. Mercy is a luxury that we can hardly ever afford. If society was based on mercy, it would fall apart. In order for civilized societies to continue to live in an ordered and supportive world, societies must thoroughly implement justice.

Works Cited

Shakespeare, William. King Lear. Toronto: Signet Classic Shakespeare, 1998.

Show More
Related

  • Be Warned and Study Justice:The Shifting Definition of Justice in Virgil’s Aeneid

    4362 Words  | 9 Pages

    A twenty-first century reading of the Iliad and the Odyssey will highlight a seeming lack of justice: hundreds of men die because of an adulteress, the most honorable characters are killed, the cowards survive, and everyone eventually goes to hell. Due to the difference in the time period, culture, prominent religions and values, the modern idea of justice is much different than that of Greece around 750 B.C. The idea of justice in Virgil’s the Aeneid is easier for us to recognize. As in our own culture, “justice” in the epic is based on a system of punishment for wrongs and rewards for honorable acts. Time and time again, Virgil provides his readers with examples of justice in the lives of his characters. Interestingly, the meaning of justice in the Aeneid transforms when applied to Fate and the actions of the gods. Unlike our modern (American) idea of blind, immutable Justice, the meanings and effects of justice shift, depending on whether its subject is mortal or immortal.

    Read More

  • Oedupus Rex and Libation Bearers

    1898 Words  | 4 Pages

    In our democratic societies, rife with vice and disputes over justice, there might have already been similar cases as those of our plays. Perhaps, one had already committed matricide under external pressure(a gun to his/her head, or a beloved one), perhaps one breached the fence of law, in order to achieve goodness(ran a red light to get to his/her dying mother) or even perhaps, someone had unknowingly committed incest with his mother who had been separated at birth. With all these morally perplexing question, how then, can we reason our way through the contested terrain of justice and injustice, equity and inequity? As the Greek plays have provided us, is to encounter with a hard moral dilemma. To start with an opinion, or a conviction about justice just like the Greek playwrights did.

    Read More

  • Comparing Aeschylus Oresteia And Plato's Republic

    1494 Words  | 3 Pages

    Justice is generally thought to be part of one system; equally affecting all involved. We define justice as being fair or reasonable. The complications fall into the mix when an act of heroism occurs or morals are written or when fear becomes to great a force. These complications lead to the division of justice onto levels. In Aeschylus’ Oresteia and Plato’s Republic and Apology, both Plato and Aeschylus examine the views of justice and the morality of the justice system on two levels: in the city-state and the individual. However, Plato examines the justice system from the perfect society and Aeschylus starts at the curse on the House of Atreus and the blood spilled within the family of Agamemnon.

    Read More

  • Human Suffering in Inferno and King Lear

    1552 Words  | 4 Pages

    Through Lear, Shakespeare expertly portrays the inevitability of human suffering. The “little nothings,” seemingly insignificant choices that Lear makes over the course of the play, inevitably evolve into unstoppable forces that change Lear’s life for the worse. He falls for Goneril’s and Regan’s flattery and his pride turns him away from Cordelia’s unembellished affection. He is constantly advised by Kent and the Fool to avoid such choices, but his stubborn hubris prevents him from seeing the wisdom hidden in the Fool’s words: “Prithee, tell him, so much the rent of his land comes to: he will not believe a fool” (Shakespeare 21). This leads to Lear’s eventual “unburdening,” as foreshadowed in Act I. This unburdening is exacerbated by his failure to recognize and learn from his initial mistakes until it is too late. Lear’s lack of recognition is, in part, explained by his belief in a predestined life controlled completely by the gods: “It is the stars, the stars above us govern our conditions” (Shakespeare 101). The elder characters in King Lear pin their various sufferings on the will of...

    Read More

  • Justice Vs. Hobbes: The State Of Justice

    1589 Words  | 4 Pages

    Justice is perhaps the most formidable instrument that could be used in the pursuit of peace. It allows for people to rise above the state of mere nature and war with one another. However the fool believes that justice is a mere tool to be used to acquire power and rule at his own discretion. Can it be possible for anyone to be that virtuous? Or does power acquired in that manner actually come from somewhere else? Through justice it’s possible to produce a sovereign that is in harmony with the very people that constitute its power. The argument against the fool and for justice will proceed from this foundation.

    Read More

  • Justified tradgedy

    1076 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the play, Gloucester, Edgar and Cordelia all falsely receive justice even though they have benevolent hearts and never did anything to deserve the punishments they receive. Justice seems to strike the good more than the wicked in the play which helps show the blindness of justice. Justice has a negative connotation throughout the play which helps show Shakespeare’s disbelief in true “justice”. Justice seems to pick out its victims randomly and without sense showing Shakespeare’s belief that justice does not exist. Overall, the unfairness of the just suffering because of justice proves that true justice does not exist in society.

    Read More

  • Justice: Who Knew It Could Be So Complicated

    1065 Words  | 3 Pages

    The term justice is used in some of America's most treasured and valued documents, from the Pledge of Allegiance, to the Constitution, and the Declaration of Independence. Everyone wants to be treated justly whether it's in the courtroom or the local bar. Most people would feel confident giving a definition for justice, but would it be a definition we could universally agree to? Given that justice is a very common term, and something we all want, it's important to have a precise definition. For hundreds of years philosophers have argued, debated, and fought over this topic. Justice can clearly be defined as the intention to conform to truth and fairness. This is true justice.

    Read More

  • The Notions of Justice in The Republic and Antigone

    1696 Words  | 4 Pages

    Within two classical works of philosophical literature, notions of justice are presented plainly. Plato’s The Republic and Sophocles’ Antigone both address elements of death, tyranny and immorality, morality, and societal roles. These topics are important elements when addressing justice, whether in the societal representation or personal representation.

    Read More

  • The justice of suffering

    615 Words  | 2 Pages

    Our conclusion can go two ways. Lear deserved what happened to him, and Lear didn’t deserve what happened to him, it’s how you view life which the answer is. I can say that the suffering does point out that there is justice in suffering, it proves that being evil is useless and only by being good to others one can have a positive life and true mutual respect and unconditional love and friendship.

    Read More

  • King Lear Forgiveness Essay

    780 Words  | 2 Pages

    William Shakespeare’s infamous Tragedy of King Lear is as much about political authority as family dynamic. Although regarded as one of the most emotionally difficult, and portrays a world lacking of love, in which humanity is detached from any spiritual, higher being, there is still glimmers of goodness that can be discovered. While other discussions of King Lear focus on the bleakness and despair of the environment as well as the characters, especially Lear, it is arguable that this play is not an exemplification of a work lacking in morals, but of the reenchantment of charity, especially forgiveness as a pushback against the violence. Through this reading, a considerable amount of credit is given to Cordelia, and the powerful emotional impact she provides.

    Read More

  • Tragic Figures in King Lear by William Shakespeare

    1336 Words  | 3 Pages

    King Lear, by William Shakespeare, is a tragic tale of filial conflict, personal transformation, and loss.  The story revolves around the King who foolishly alienates his only truly devoted daughter and realizes too late the true nature of his other two daughters.   A major subplot involves the illegitimate son of Gloucester, Edmund, who plans to discredit his brother Edgar and betray their father.  With these and other major characters in the play, Shakespeare clearly asserts that human nature is either entirely good, or entirely evil.  Some characters experience a transformative phase, where, by some trial or ordeal, their nature is profoundly changed.  We shall examine Shakespeare's stand on human nature in King Lear by looking at specific characters in the play, Cordelia who is wholly good, Edmund who is wholly evil, and Lear whose nature is transformed by the realization of his folly and his descent into madness.

    Read More

  • King Lear Research Paper

    1542 Words  | 4 Pages

    The idea of justice and equality within a culture is one of extreme importance. Not only is criminal justice important to a society, but moral equality is essential to the welfare of a civilization as well. William Shakespeare’s play, King Lear, centers on the theme of justice, or rather injustice, in the world. The foolish King Lear must navigate through a society in which the only way there can ever be justice is when humans behave justly toward each other, which very rarely happens. King Lear takes place in a world where “justice is anything but constant, and fortitude, prudence, and temperance are called into question” (Graham n.pag.). Without the help of any divine force, the existentialist characters in William Shakespeare's King

    Read More

  • An Analysis Of Divine Justice In King Lear

    1655 Words  | 4 Pages

    An Analysis of Divine Justice in King Lear: What the Character’s Deaths revealed about Justice

    Read More

  • What is Justice?

    710 Words  | 2 Pages

    Of course I looked “justice” up in the dictionary before I started to write this paper and I didn’t find anything of interest except of course a common word in every definition, that being “fair”. This implies that justice would have something to do with being fair. I thought that if one of the things the law and legal system are about is maintaining and promoting justice and a sense of “fairness”, they might not be doing such a spiffy job. An eye for an eye is fair? No, that would be too easy, too black and white. I could cite several examples where I thought a judge’s or jury’s ruling was not fair, but I won’t because frankly, we’ve all seen those.

    Read More

  • Revenge Essay

    782 Words  | 2 Pages

    To right a wrong, appeals to most westernized people. The westward movement in the United States depicts harsh times where lawlessness was the norm. Some people felt compelled then to stand up for what was right, as evidenced in the Battle at the OK Corral. Even old shows like Gunsmoke displayed Marshall Dillon the empowered individual to stand up for the law and protect the rights of the townspeople. These examples reflect both revenge and justice all parties involved in a conflict where a wrong needs to be righted. As laws have been established and enforced to provide a sense of order, the need for revenge is no longer justifiable nor soul cleansing because some people thrive on vengeance, some people thrive on old prejudices, and others are hero seekers which does not achieve the desired end result.

    Read More

More about Significance of Justice

Open Document