Justice Law and punishment

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Define justice
treating people equally and fairly
1 of 101
Important aspect of...
Social democracy, where the legal and moral system of society result of negotiation of needs of people and a whole and freedom of individual
2 of 101
Westcott
'justice is fairness, equal opportunities for all'
3 of 101
Marx
true justice will only flourish in a classless society
4 of 101
Justice and equality
difficult concept to define
5 of 101
Augustine
'equality must be something other than treating everyone in the same way, since everyone is different'
6 of 101
Jefferson
'there's nothing more unequal than the equal treatment for unequal people'
7 of 101
Four main notions of equality
Fundamental equality, social equality, equal treatment for equals and treating people unequally in certain circumstances
8 of 101
Fundamental equality
all citizens are treated as equals by the government and legal systems
9 of 101
Social equality
citizens have the right to vote and stand for public office
10 of 101
Equal treatment for equals
people of the same group are treated in the same way
11 of 101
Treating people unequally in special circumstances
someone in a different situation is an unequal who made need special treatments, e.g. disabled person receiving benefits
12 of 101
Why justice is difficult to achieve?
inequalities that exist
13 of 101
Hume
impossible to have a justice system based on what people deserve, since it's impossible to agree what each person deserves,
14 of 101
Hume #2
nor possible to have 'justice of equality' since people by nature are unequal on what they have/prosper more than others
15 of 101
Plato
Justice is the way to the happiest life. Injustice is sickness- suffering for all
16 of 101
Plato #2
State and individual should be ruled by reason- creates sense of order and justice control self-interest
17 of 101
How far did Plato go??
justice is an objective, knowable reality, on which the law rests
18 of 101
Nagel
emphasis on equality for just society- inequalities deliberately imposed e.g. racial discrimination
19 of 101
Nagel#2
justice-hard to achieve because stem is unfair and helps those born into advantages e.g. rich families- best education, greater opportunities
20 of 101
Marx lad
to achieve justice- balance inequalities via redistributive taxation
21 of 101
Redistributive taxation
taxing the rich more heavily and using money to provide better eduction for poor
22 of 101
C. Colson
Justice coincides with its society- law maintains justice- gains moral authority via objective standard of justice applicable to all humanity
23 of 101
Who's the ultimate authority for Colson?
God- 'for justice is impossible without the rule of law, and the rule of law is impossible without transcendent authority'
24 of 101
Colson's true justice
restorative justice
25 of 101
Utilitarians
distributive justice- ensures greatest good for the greatest number
26 of 101
Bentham
Principal of Utility to reduce injustice in industrial Britain, poor majority
27 of 101
Restorative justice
focuses on the needs of victims and offenders- putting things back as they were, e.g. by apology
28 of 101
Distributive justice
socially just with respect to the allocation of goods in a society
29 of 101
Ross and justice
not concerned with production of maximum amount of good, but right distribution of it - unfair allocation of resources- unjust
30 of 101
Social contract theory
“Don’t harm me, and I won’t harm you” doctrine.
31 of 101
Purpose of SCT
method of ensuring state's laws are accepted and followed- greater freedom and peace; citizens agree to obey state & limit personal freedom- state promises protection, security and works for common good
32 of 101
Rawls
people are self-interested, equal in ability and freedom, rational, know facts about human nature and ignorant about future in society
33 of 101
"veil of ignorance'
crucial- ensures motivation/compassion- no one wants to built a society where they could get abandoned
34 of 101
Two principals SCT based on
principal of liberty and difference
35 of 101
Principal of liberty
free to pursue life they want as long as it doesn't harm others
36 of 101
Principal of difference
contract must be flexible enough to allow for different aims and goals
37 of 101
How's the inevitable inequality minimised?
'minimum rule of game theory'
38 of 101
'minimum rule of game theory'
aims to give people equal playing field- people begin with similar opportunities but allows flexibility so outcome differs
39 of 101
What type of theory is Rawls'?
Communitarian- in-built concern for those worst off than us- more than mere obligation not to harm
40 of 101
Rousseau
to maintain justice- citizens should give away a bit of their personal freedom in return for protection from the state
41 of 101
Nozick
Differentiates between patterned and unpatterned theories
42 of 101
patterned theories
e.g. Marxism, imposing order on society, merely works in theory not practice
43 of 101
unpatterned theories
takin full account of reality as we find it
44 of 101
Nozick and justice
'entitlement'- I am entitled to what I have as long as I acquired it legally
45 of 101
Emphasis on...
property/material goods 'holdings'
46 of 101
Three principals applicable to just distribution of holdings
Just acquisition and transfer & rectification
47 of 101
Just acquisition
legal purchase of holdings
48 of 101
Just transfer
legal selling/transfer of holdings
49 of 101
Rectification
resort to law if the above is been illegal
50 of 101
To maintain justice...
uphold three principals- thus morally safe
51 of 101
Type of theory?
Individualistic- no moral obligation to help anyone except ourselves
52 of 101
Another principal of justice
rights and duties- 'moral agents' ought to do certain things e.g. not harm people, and receive certain things- freedom
53 of 101
Two types of rights
political and civil
54 of 101
Political rights
relationship between individual and government
55 of 101
Civil rights
equal treatment for all in relation to law, religious freedom, ownership of property, education and privacy
56 of 101
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Must be accepted and acted upon Are possessed by all humans Are fundamental to human life Must be enforced May serve to restrict the actions of others In some cases, cannot be forfeited
57 of 101
Justice and laws
enforce laws in society designed to protect the weak from oppression of the strong
58 of 101
Law
made by state and justice enforced via courts
59 of 101
Aquinas
law and justice are intrinsically linked and if the law is not just then people are under no obligation to obey it
60 of 101
Aquinas #2
government does have the right to be paternalistic laws that limit human freedom/ cause harm to the individual
61 of 101
JS Mill
only purpose of passing laws is to stop one person from doing significant harm to another against their will-Anything else people do is up to them and government should not interfere
62 of 101
(Harm Principle)
law can be opposed if it does not lead to the greatest good for the greatest number
63 of 101
Punishments' purpose
given to ensure laws are obeyed and will correspond to the severity of the crime
64 of 101
Punishments should be...
proportionate, humane and respectful to the dignity of the individual
65 of 101
Purposes of punishment
Deterrence, reform/rehabilitation, protection, vindication and retribution
66 of 101
Deterrence
preventing / discouraging the criminal from doing the same again and deterring others from doing the same
67 of 101
rehabilitation
changing the offender so they will not offend again, e.g. anger therapy
68 of 101
Protection
protect rest of society from their actions
69 of 101
Vindication
offenders must be punished to show that the law must be respected and is right
70 of 101
Retribution
those who do wrong must suffer a punishment to reinforce the values of society and give society a sense of revenge
71 of 101
Utilitarian in nature
Deterrence, reform/rehabilitation, protection, vindication
72 of 101
Natural justice
Retribution
73 of 101
C.S. Lewis
Desert is the only proper basis for deciding what happens to a criminal-what they deserve
74 of 101
C.S. Lewis #2
deterrence and rehabilitation sound merciful but the criminal loses the protection of the natural law which ensures that they are punished in a way that is just, and is placed in the hands of apparent experts who do what they want to make the crimina
75 of 101
“Universal Desertism about Justice.”
justice obtains when people receive everything they deserve on any basis
76 of 101
Mill and conception of justice
"universally considered just that each person should obtain that (whether good or evil) which he deserves; and unjust that he should obtain a good, or be made to undergo an evil, which he does not deserve"
77 of 101
Leibniz and 'the law of justice' in relation to desertism
only one main currency of justice (’happiness and participation in the perfection of the universe’), and only one main desert base that would make a person deserve his share of this currency (’virtue and the extent to which his will has contributed t
78 of 101
“Divine Moral Desertism”
justice obtains when everyone receives from God in the afterlife precisely the level of happiness or unhappiness that he or she deserves on the basis of his or her level of moral virtue or vice during life.
79 of 101
“Earthly Moral Desertism about Justice.”
relevant deserts are levels of happiness and unhappiness to be experienced here on earth, during our lives-we deserve them from our country.
80 of 101
Capital Punishment
the legally authorized killing of someone as punishment for a crime
81 of 101
For CP
Acts as deterrent, Protect society against most dangerous criminals, Ultimate revenge and compensation, Family have sense of retribution
82 of 101
Against CP
Number of murders do not drop in countries where it is legal, Innocent people wrongly accused (Derek Bentley) Can encourage martyrdom, Human life is sacred
83 of 101
Countries still using CP
North-Korea, China
84 of 101
Objectivism
there are laws that are true for all people, wherever they are
85 of 101
Problems with Objectivism (3)
doesn't allow of individual cases, how do we decide what forms of punishment are right?Doesn’t allow different cultures to conceive of their own concepts of justice.
86 of 101
The Cold War
the battle between the ideologies of communism and capitalism demonstrated very different concepts of economic justice. This shows that there is not an objective concept of economic justice.
87 of 101
Objective rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
88 of 101
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights-issue
often accused of being a Western idea imposed on other, less powerful countries by the UN.
89 of 101
Advantages of objectivism
All members of the UN (all countries bar two; America and Samalia) have signed the Universal Declaration of human rights, recognising the objectivity of certain rights.
90 of 101
Advantages of objectivism #2
move away from communism and the non-existence of any true free market economies demonstrates that there is an objective concept of economic justice- social capitalism; difficult to define; needs to provides gov. that are prepared to create a welfare
91 of 101
Cultural Relativism and Justice
Every culture’s concept of justice is just as valid as any others as long as it is commonly accepted in that culture
92 of 101
Problems with Cultural Relativism
Can allow inaction in the name of tolerance from countries where instead action is needed e.g. Burma, China.
93 of 101
Problems with Cultural Relativism #2
some basic concepts of justice that cultures have in common.Doesn’t allow for change in concepts of justice.
94 of 101
Advantages with Cultural Relativism
Prevents countries interfering with other countries affairs because they disagree with their idea of justice e.g. US funding of democratic movements in non-democratic nations. Who says democracy is right for everyone? E.g. when America invaded Vietn
95 of 101
Advantages with Cultural Relativism
Some out-dated laws become forgotten, e.g.cannot carry a plank along the pavement
96 of 101
Subjectivism and justice
Whatever justice is for the individual in their particular situation is valid.
97 of 101
Problems with subjectivism
Allows anything in the name of justice if that individual believes it to be right.
98 of 101
Problems with subjectivism #2
Someone with mental health illness who killed someone; goes to mental health hospital, not prison. Is this fair?
99 of 101
Problems with subjectivism #3
No common idea of justice; makes it difficult to establish a secure society.
100 of 101
Advantages of subjectivism
Allows people to express their own idea of justice, which could allow for progress in concepts of justice.
101 of 101

Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

Social democracy, where the legal and moral system of society result of negotiation of needs of people and a whole and freedom of individual

Back

Important aspect of...

Card 3

Front

'justice is fairness, equal opportunities for all'

Back

Preview of the back of card 3

Card 4

Front

true justice will only flourish in a classless society

Back

Preview of the back of card 4

Card 5

Front

difficult concept to define

Back

Preview of the back of card 5
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