Justice Virtue and Value
by Joseph Rowlands

Justice is often difficult to achieve. If someone betrays you, you probably won't have the opportunity to punish them for the act. Without the ability to use force, interactions between people must be voluntary. And if someone betrayed you, they will be unlikely to provide you the opportunity to return the favor. While he may deserve some kind of punishment for his destructive actions, you probably won't be able to provide it.

There are other reasons why justice can be difficult. If someone is mugging you, they clearly don't deserve your money or cooperation. While you may want to stand up to him or use defensive force, the risks are substantial. Sometimes you have to be willing to accept an injustice, at least for awhile.

This creates a tension when it comes to morality. Justice is clearly a value. We want to live in a just society, and it should be something that we act towards. But it's not always possible or feasible to enact justice. Sometimes you just don't have the means to enact justice.

One distinction that may be useful is the view of justice as a value versus a virtue. Justice as a value is people getting what they deserve. We would benefit if our society was just, meaning that people could expect to get what they deserve. If someone is destructive to the harmony of interests, they would be viewed and treated as such. If someone committed a crime, they would be forced to pay for that crime proportional to the damage they inflicted. If someone is beneficial towards the harmony of interests, they would be treated well. Knowing that people got what they deserved would help create the right incentives for people to act peacefully and respectfully with others.

Justice as a virtue is a policy of treating people how they deserve to be treated. If people are destructive, you treat them in a negative way. Maybe you avoid them, or let others know that they can't be trusted. You remove support and don't allow them to benefit from interacting with you. If someone contributes positively to your life, you treat them with respect and kindness. You provide thanks when it's due, and make sure that they benefit when they benefit you.

The distinction here is that the virtue of justice is limited to how you personally treat someone, and not with whether that person gets all of what he is due. If someone has hurt others, you can act accordingly and keep them out of your life. This doesn't actually remedy his previous actions, though. He may deserve some kind of punishment. But while this may be of value, if it isn't within your means, you can't expect to achieve that value.

So the virtue of justice focuses on how you treat the person. It is concerned with what kind of interactions you choose to have with him. Will you be friendly and cooperative? Or will you refuse to interact with him, or keep the interaction negative?

In contrast, the value of justice is a bigger picture aim. It may be something that you can't fully achieve on your own. But the way you practice the virtue of justice will have an impact. It will help to achieve the value of justice, even if it is only a small part. A person may not get the punishment he deserves, but if everyone refuses to interact in a positive way with him, he will lose countless opportunities for gaining value.

While the value of justice is partially achieve through the virtue of justice, that doesn't mean it is the primary goal. If you choose to not interact with someone who has betrayed your trust, you aren't doing it primarily as a form of punishment. Instead, it is a form of self-defense. You are acting in a way to promote your own life, and that means determining if you can count on people and acting appropriately based on that judgment.

It is also beneficial to your own life to punish those who hurt you and to reward those that help you. Acting with justice alerts people that they need to treat you appropriately or suffer the consequences. It shows them that if they watch out for your interests, you'll watch out for theirs. It creates incentives for them to act appropriately towards you.

These are the goals of the virtue of justice. You treat people properly as a way of maximizing your own life. You avoid destructive people and pursue those people who benefit your life. The wider value of justice, the idea that people will get what they deserve, is an important value as well. But it is not the primary focus.

Discuss this Article (4 messages)