Value Of Justice

704 Words3 Pages
Sigmund Freud once said, “The first requisite of civilization is that of justice.” The virtue of justice is an essential part of society. In King Lear, we see that justice is also just as important in a world of fiction and it is shown in many aspects. The most obvious ones are, humans judging each other, divine justice and finally the consequences of justice. The purpose of justice is to establish who and what is right and wrong. Without justice, chaos and anarchy would surely follow. The primary flaw with justice is someone who passes a judgment upon another while being unfit to do so. In King Lear, we see many characters committing injustices toward each other. In Act 1, King Lear feels that it is just to strip Cordelia of her share in the kingdom since she had nothing to say unlike her sisters. As the play progresses and the King goes to visit Goneril and Regan, he realizes that he was unjust in his actions for what had been done to Cordelia. He then comes to the sad realization that the world is full of hypocrites and that it is not right for men to pass judgment upon each other. When he encounters Gloucester he says “Look with thine ears: see how yond justice rails upon yond simple thief. Hark, in thine ear: change places, and handy-dandy, which is justice, which is the thief” (IV vi 143-145) The King also says “Through tattered clothes great vices do appear; Robes and furred gowns hide all…” He states this because he realizes that sometimes wrong can only be seen in those that don’t attempt to hide and that others hide it well. The injustices committed by characters in the play are brutal and filled with awful human cruelty. Divine justice plays an interesting part in the play as well. The play was written in a time when people had strong religious beliefs and God played an important role in their lives. Gloucester believed that “As flies to wanton boys

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