[Solved] Law and Ethics Questions & Answers

Law and Justice

The current paper answers various questions to determine the law and justice concept. Justice is interconnected with the notions of morality and law. Attaining justice is mostly considered the main function or aim of the law. It is the ultimate or ideal objective towards which the law should strive. The answers reveal that the cultural and moral values of the community in which the law is formed determine whether the regulation is regarded as just.

Question 1

Plato’s problem/Orwell’s problem can be said to be two sides to the challenge of the foundation of language understanding: “innatism” and “expepricism.” In this way, Chomsky explains that people are born with innate devices for language acquisition. Nonetheless, there is a need for linguistic input for it to function. It is mandatory to possess both of them. The dispute is concentrated on the importance of the two problems while shaping language and the brain/mind of human beings (Azabdaftari, 2014). Additionally, Plato’s problem/Orwell’s problem positions can be captured by two socio-philosophical terms: “nurture” and “nature.” One cannot help but be surprised that regardless of the vast evidence, people have little understanding of the obvious. The way how a child acquires a first language is a good example. It is unclear how a young one can cope with the cumbersome task of learning semantics within the first two years of their lives. The second challenge is that irrespective of minimal evidence, people have vast knowledge. An example is religion. In brief, despite being surrounded by the different manifestations of religious tradition, human beings are unaware of their origin, purpose, and cause.

Question 2

The public sphere is regarded as a social life sphere where a community outlook can be established. The various aspects are fundamental to the general area. Primarily, it is open to all people. It is also integrated into each discussion where people come together to form a public. Nowadays, there is no intimidating force behind it, but its citizens unite and assemble freely to convey their viewpoints. The state is considered to be a “public power” that is legitimized through public elections. Nonetheless, the country and its forceful powers and practices are not part but a counter of a public sphere. Thus, public opinion has to regulate the government and its influence on every debate through formal elections.

Question 3

The meditation on Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go on NPR demonstrates the narrative of great emotional force. It discloses the abyss under people’s deceptive logic of association with the world. Based on the story, NPR has highlighted how science, primarily genetic engineering, could shake the basis of society, thus examining how the world would be perceived when people are no longer born as equals. In this way, Ishiguro shows that getting to a point where an individual is considered physically or intellectually superior to others has enormous implications for the fundamental value of society since they have removed the individual likelihood of getting ill or being enhanced in other ways. Conversely, in “On Justice: Lessons from Plato, Rawls, and Ishiguro,” Nancy Fraser examines Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go and reveals that truth is mere of systems of thought, meaning that justice is the first virtue of social institutions (Fraser, 2012). Therefore, the insight by Fraser is that attribute is the first justice given that overcoming institutional injustice is the only way to form the foundation on which other values, both individual and societal, can flourish.

Question 4

The life and journey of Liz Murray are inspiring. She was formerly homeless but altered her life of despair into a motivating journey of hope, determination, and hard-won success. Murray’s parents were drug addicts, which implied that she had to fend for her life. Consequently, she routinely sought refuge at all-night subway stations and ate from dumpsters to survive. Determined not to be defined by her conditions, Murray recognized education as the key to a new way of living and a fresh beginning (James, 2013). She attained her high school diploma in just two years and won a scholarship at Harvard University. It turned her bleak situation into a future filled with limitless possibilities. Conversely, “The Rose that Grew from Concrete” signifies Tupac Shakur as the rose and depicts how the flower grew from concrete to breathe air and walk eventually. Thus, the notion of Tupac herein is how he grew up while no one cared about him. In brief, the rose signifies how he is self-made and got through the struggle without support.

Question 5

Erin Gruwell discusses various issues in the Freedom Writers Foundation, focusing on belonging and becoming. The concentration of Freedom Writers Foundation is on four crucial programs that advance the learning of pupils around the world. The emphasis is on presenting a scholarship to first-generation high school graduates, establishing practical and remarkable curricula, training professors to clarify each student, and conveying hope by sharing narratives of overcoming misfortune through education. Likewise, Liz Murray tackles the question of belonging and becoming by utilizing storytelling to assist abandoned teenagers in tapping into their inner spirit (James, 2013). The author further uses the narratives to help the youth actualize their dreams. Her work is part of a spirituality and psychology program at Columbia University Teachers College. In this way, the approach is a pioneering effort to use mindfulness and meditation therapies to help the youth overcome trauma and transition into adulthood successfully.

Question 6

It is worth noting that many of Ishiguro’s fictional characters possess the self-delusion depiction of the abyss beneath the illusory sense of relationship with the globe. The characters have painful chasms where they conceal their mistakes to protect themselves. Nonetheless, when everything appears hopeless, the characters often bravely turn to their imagination to forge a connection to meaning and life. S.E. Hinton’s (2016) The Outsiders presented teenage characters that were the opposite of everything an adolescent should be. The narration is done from the viewpoint of a fourteen-year-old Ponyboy who could easily be judged as a hooligan due to his hair and clothes. On the contrary, despite the death of his parents in a car crash, he is not violent, does not drink, loves books and films, and attains good grades at school. His character and those of others are one of the elements that make the novel as a whole more authentic and challenge any preconceived notion of the readers regarding a lousy individual. The experience of Liz Murray is that of resilience, despite living in an impoverished neighbourhood of the Bronx in New York (James, 2013). Consequently, the insight from the characters regarding the relationship between law and social justice is that people should have equal access to different opportunities, wealth, privileges, justice, and well-being despite their economic, political, and legal circumstances.

Question 7

The concept of injustice by Amartya Sen relate to Ponyboy’s experience in The Outsiders in various ways. Specifically, it revolves around the sense of entitlement. At one point, Ponyboy proclaimed that Darry, who was only 20 years, did not deserve to work like an old man (Hinton, 2016). Despite not having a character of colour, the novel can still be about race, given that it prompts a question about who is deemed undeserving and deserving in the country. The argument by Amartya Sen is also related to John Rawls’s discussion, as outlined in his A Theory of Justice. Rawls pointed out that people perpetrate a comparative injustice by honouring some and not others, and no one is accepted by failing to do so. Each is treated less than they deserve unjustly from a non-comparative viewpoint. Sen has also illustrated the concept of injustice in Three Children and a Flute. In the narrative, Carla, Bob, and Anne are arguing over a flute. From the injustice standpoint, the author demonstrates that whoever one chooses to give the instrument would always be perceived as unfair due to the rightful claims of the other two. In this way, it seems that injustice is also inevitable in various cases apart from pre-existence.

Question 8

Considering Ward Moore’s Freedom Ride by Mike Davis, it is apparent that the gaps in understanding that the characters of S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders are counterfactual historiography. It entails taking the familiar genre of the “what if?” story (Davis, 2011). In this case, The Outsiders and narrating the resulting web of consequences with both ingenious invention and breathtaking plausibility. In essence, this gap of understanding relates to Ishiguro and Nancy Fraser based on their various contexts, including philosophical speculation and science fiction. Likewise, Ishiguro and Nancy Fraser relate to Plato’s and Orwell’s problems in various ways based on the possibility of language and moral sensibility as fundamental components of the human biological endowment as it interacts with the social world. In brief, if a person is not offered an innate gift of acquiring language, language would not develop without input.

Question 9

My experience with the intersection of law and injustice was based on economic terms. In this case, the efforts of social justice aimed at degrading the financial status of different groups defined by demographic characteristics or group identity, including religion, gender, and race. In this regard, Liz Murray has inspired me not to be afraid of tackling challenges and not to lose hope in my goals. I admire Erin Gruwell’s determination and courage to work for peace. In brief, Erin Gruwell has encouraged me to make an effort to fight racial prejudices and stereotypes in my life.

Question 10

The Founding Fathers did not want democracy to rule. They viewed the question of democracy as a spectacle of contention and turbulence. Democracy is mob rule and not freedom since freedom results from acknowledging various rights that should never be taken, even by a 99% vote. Thankfully, the country lives in a republic, not a democracy, as stipulated in Article IV Section 4 of the US Constitution: The US should ensure that every state follows a republican form of government. The latter was based on the circumstances and needs that have prevailed in numerous nations. In evolution, negative liberty plays a role in maintaining that people are free to the point that they can access an action domain absent coercive restraint or interference. Finally, models of positive liberty are a concept that questions the authenticity of individual desires.

Question 11

The different policies toward immigration have affected the possibility of eudemonia in various ways. For example, people cannot develop the best of themselves and experience comfort and pleasure. The point is that individuals cannot feel and pursue meaning, excellence, flourishing, self-actualization, and personal growth. In essence, this plays a significant role in contemporary legislation and discourse concerning “illegal aliens” between the federal government and states in the US. Mainly, immigrants in the US have been under growing stress and scrutiny in recent years, particularly those without proper immigration papers. The immigration reform of 1924 was significant, in this regard, by limiting the annual number of new immigrants based on each nation to only 2% of the number of settlers from that country who were already residing in the US (Marinari et al., 2018). Lastly, the immigration reform of 1965 eradicated the earlier quota system centred on national origin and developed a new policy of immigration focused on attracting skilled labour and reuniting families.

Question 12

Finally, James Madison meant that the masses’ beliefs are not established deductively from coherent compilation and careful examination of evidence. They were shown what to believe and understand and formed their opinions in that way. As Jennifer Nedelsky and Morton Horwitz discussed, the Madisonian framework’s limitation based on private property was that the model was focused on restraining popular self-governance from protecting property. However, this eventually altered the system in favour of the propertied few. The quotes by Madison and the stories from Freedom Writers Foundation and Liz Murray have taught me various lessons. For example, concerning the importance of study and struggle in belonging and relationship, I have learned that social justice is fundamental, given that it works towards and promotes a community that celebrates equality and diversity. Finally, regarding education for emancipation and personal and social transformation, I have learned that in a society, having more diversity and equality is suitable for a community, given that it promotes social well-being, growth, and opportunity.

Conclusion

All in all, the answers have revealed that legal principles should be applied fairly. In essence, this invariably entails treating people similarly in all circumstances. The answers have revealed that financial services, planning, and health and safety laws should be applied and operated consistently and fairly. The promotion of justice is mirrored in the dynamic of the rule of law. Thus, there is a need for a justice system to help a country strive by forming a respectful and inclusive society where everyone lives in security and safety.

References

Azabdaftari, B. (2014). The source of human knowledge: Plato’s problem and Orwell’s problem. International Journal of Foreign Language Teaching and Research, 2(6), 11-18.

Davis, M. (2011). Ward Moore’s freedom ride. Science Fiction Studies, 38(3), 385-392.

Fraser, N. (2012). On justice lessons from Plato, Rawls and Ishiguro. New Left Review, (74), 41-51.

Hinton, S. E. (2016). The outsiders. Penguin.

James, S., D. (2013, October). ‘Homeless to Harvard:’ Child of addicts counsels youth in spirituality. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Health/homeless-harvard-child-addicts-counsels-youth-spirituality/story?id=20523916.

Marinari, M., Hsu, M., & García, M. C. (Eds.). (2018). A nation of immigrants reconsidered: US society in an age of restriction, 1924-1965. University of Illinois Press.