Introduction Essays (5809 words) - Philosophy, Ethics, Justice

Introduction Essays (5809 words) - Philosophy, Ethics, Justice Introduction Justice is a concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, religion, equity and fairness, as well as the administration of the law, taking into account the inalienable and inborn rights of all human beings and citizens, the right of all people and individuals to equal protection before the law of their civil rights, without discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, ethnicity, religion, disability, age, or other characteristics, and is further regarded as being inclusive of social justice. Justice is not merely right determination and adjudication of disputes and enforcement of Law, but is so comprehensive in its meaning and import that it takes within its ambit the whole of political, social, juristic and moral idealism. It is so, because Justice has reference to the whole of human existence which we want to realize by our thought, will and action. The mystery of Justice cannot be unraveled by human reason, logic or language completely. It has greater appeal to human soul. Justice as reality is only fully reflected in our conscience and felt through our intuition. Jurists and philosophers have seen in the concept of justice their own ideal. To Plato Justice is realization of Good' which can be achieved in society by doing one's own duty according to one's station in life otherwise, Justice achieves Good' by retribution; .To Aristotle Justice in its general meaning is righteousness'. In its particular meaning it means proper or equitable distribution of the goods of existence, correction of wrongs and exchange of goods. The quality of being just' or right' or reasonable' may be generally termed as justice. Justice is primarily a concept of morality. It is a an ethical concept. Justice embodies an ideal and it symbolizes perfectness. Although, it is reflected in absolute truth', yet it is a dynamic idea and the realization of the ideal of justice is a continuous process. The concept of justice and it changes from time to time according to changes in people's concepts and their consciousness. In the ancient and medieval Europe, slavery and serfdom were widely justified and untouchability was also justified in India. The status of inferiority of women was justified in several societies including that in India. But today the position has drastically changed. These are at present considered as unjust. The changing outlook about social problems and the concept of human liberty and equality considerably influence the change in the concept of justice and thus, it is an evidence of the dynamic character of the idea of justice. The concept of justice is highly essential for the social existence of man. Etymology of Justice The word justice comes from its Latin root Jus' meaning right'. It has its literal meaning as binding' or fitting or tying together of things and qualities harmoniously in human life. Thus Justice becomes a means of adjustment and a measurement. The idol of Justice blindfolded with balance in hand gives the expression of balancing, weighing and impartial judging which applies to disputes and conflicts. For this purpose justice becomes the referee to give decision of victory or defeat to parties. It seems that Justice has more utility for a conflict situation. It balances principles like liberty, equality etc also. Speculation about justice grew early in western materialistic society which from the very beginning had political orientation of western society in Greece which had to deal with conflicts. In contrast to this in Indian culture there had been no loss of faith between religious authority and political authority. Indian cultural drive from the very beginning is more towards in tegration and less towards deciding the conflicts between individual, state and society interse. Law as dharma was both a verdict and a faith, political trust, the commandment of Law as well as justice. The Functional Role of Justice Though it is difficult to know the nature and content of justice yet the idea of justice has been effective in the course of centuries in performing the function of excluding arbitrariness, in providing rational method of settling disputes and in restraining the coercive powers of Law. Justice as impartiality has been recognized from the very beginning of the civilization in ancient Egypt