Justice in Society
What does justice in society really mean? In order to recognize threats to justice in the world around you, it is necessary to look at the broad philosophical concept of justice. You already may be familiar with the general concept of justice, but the readings this week also focus on distributive justice, an important idea for you to understand if you are to see how justice is applied within society. Distributive justice relies on philosophical principles of distribution and involves fair distribution of everything from wealth to employment opportunities. In this assignment, you will select a current societal issue and explore how it represents a threat to justice.
To prepare for this assignment:
? Review the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entries “Justice as a Virtue” and “Distributive Justice.” Pay particular attention to the history of justice and its connection to rationalism and distribution in society. (website listed below)
? Reflect on recent events in the news chronicling issues dealing with or related to justice in that they pose a potential threat to justice.
? Select a specific example of a societal issue that you are aware of from your own experience or from the media that represents a threat to justice.
? Think about what factors you would consider when determining how to address the threat to justice presented in the issue you selected.
With these thoughts in mind:
Write a brief description of the societal issue you selected. Then explain how and why the issue represents a threat to justice, using information you have learned about the concept of justice and how threats to justice are manifested in society. Finally, describe the factors you would consider when determining how to address the threat to justice.
Be sure to support your response with specific references to the resources.
Websites:
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Justice as a Virtue
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/justice-virtue
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Distributive Justice
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/justice-distributive/
