Noah Bachman

p.3
Hela
5 November 2015

What is the difference between revenge and justice? There are significant differences
that distinguish the two apart but the most obvious differences is the emotion that goes
with them. Other obvious differences are why you are doing a particular action and
whose going to benefit from being helped from your action?
Emotion is the most obvious attribute that separates revenge from justice.
Revenge is based on emotion, especially anger. When you want revenge, its usually
because someone did something to you, your family or close friends. You typically feel
that someone must pay dearly for wronging you and you want them to suffer dearly for
making you feel so enraged. You want them to suffer something painful! Justice, on the
other hand, is more calculated, calmer and less spontaneous. Although justice may not
seem as emotional, it can have the same emotion as revenge but with a more legal
tone. Some may say it has no emotion because you may not know the person whom
your actions are against but justice can also be swift with less of a negative
circumstance for the person seeking restitution. When someone generally seeks justice
it typically has the sense that it is the right thing to do. For some people, this can be
confusing. People think that they're doing the right thing, but it can be for the wrong
reasons. Without a due process or a trial of some sort and without a Judge to determine
guilt or innocence, getting even can simply be revenge. Justice is the law. It is not to
physically hurt someone, although justice can lead to physical justice, its not often
what justice is intended to accomplish. Its purpose is to halt someone from continuing
their assault on people and or society. As Leon Seltzer said, Revenge is predominantly
emotional; Justice is primarily rational.
Things that separate revenge from justice are why youre doing what youre doing. If
youre moved toward action primarily based on elevated emotions or because you feel
that a person or a group of people deserve punishment for wronging you and you want
them to suffer, then that is revenge.
If you following a calculated, wellorchestrated plan that will not immediately and without judicial course and is not only
derived from emotion but has intellect and legal course and is simply the right thing to
do, and it is not solely based on emotion, then its fair to say, itsfollowing the path of
justice. For example, a police officer does not just select someone to put in jail because
he just doesnt like them or he thinks they should be put away. He should not put
someone in jail simply because of their appearance, he has to make a rational decision
based on their actions; did they violate the law or not? Seltzer said, Revenge is about
relation; justice is about restoring balance.

Who is benefited from your actions towards another person? Is it yourself or is it

bigger than that? When you are the only one that gets affected from what you did to
another person or you make the other persons life miserable then you are seeking
revenge. When you do something for bigger more profound reasons that can be
considered justice. When police officers arrest a murderer, it has an effect on everyone
in that community that was affected by the horrific actions of a single individual. It
brings a sense of relief to the families, the community and the nation knowing that
justice had been served. Not only does justice seek to calm people, but it saves them
also. That is what true justice is.
Justice is doing something without emotion, it is doing something because it helps
other people not just yourself. Revenge is emotion based mostly anger, it is doing
something because you feel they deserve it. Revenge and justice are very different yet
a lot of people get them mixed up. People should know the difference between the two
for when someone reached justice and gives them the credit they deserve. They should
know the difference so they when someone wants to get revenge that they can talk
them out of it or teach the person that seeking revenge is frowned upon. Justice is
something that is highly valued. Revenge is not. People should not get the two confused
they are two completely different things, and they should not get mixed up.