Dr. Martin Luther king once said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (Ali B. Ali-Dinar; Ph. D. ) Justice! What is justice? The quality of being just; guided by truth reason, justice and fairness.
The portrayal of justice is an eternal controversy that has developed over time from ancient civilizations to modern democracies, Not only portrayed overtime but though mediums of media and lit, earlier in the development of literature justice was depicted to be carried out in a more hero fashion meaning a person coming into a conflicting situation nd solving the conflict or bring justice to light under his or her conditions therefore adopting a heroes attributes and overall distinction in the public eye as an enforcer of justice also the hero fashion came with a touch of mild brutality in the form of execution, assassination be headings etc.
These brutal actions came hand and hand with this hero acts but in contrast to modern day justice being carried out in such ways would cause an enormous agitation as well as controversy because of the birth of multiple government policies that enabled people to ork under the government to enforce justice such as police.
When it comes to modern time’s people also took things into their own hands as well for example the black lives matter group that protest the equal treatment under the law. This is known as vigilantly acts, what is a vigilantly how do you define their actions? Vigilantly, a member of a self-appointed group of citizens who undertake law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate.
In specific this portrayal of justice has eveloped overtime throughout media and literature due to many outside influences from either new government policies to newly adopted ethics some of the best examples of these would be the brave hero Beowulf from the Anglo-Saxon written book as well as his 20th century contrast in Batman the motion picture, as for vigilantes the classic book Dracula based out of Victorian England comfortably plays that role and also has a 20th century counterpart in the motion picture League of extraordinary gentlemen which came out in July of 2003.
According to Michael Wood and the BBC History’s “Anglo-Saxons ad brutal corporal and capital punishments at their disposal, including ‘the ordeal’ and grisly mutilations. And they also tried to persuade, cajole, or enforce allegiance with the common oath. Like many traditional societies, the Anglo-Saxons placed a high value on a person’s word, their sworn promise. That was exactly the case when the Anglo-Saxon book Beowulf was developed in 1000 AD showcasing a hero with barbaric tendencies known for his brutal methods to enforce justice, therefore he single handily became a cover boy for justice, justice that is completely questionable in modern day society.
There were many forms of justice that was carried out in the book for example Beowulf came to kill the mother of a horrible creature named Grendel with an origin from the original humans Adam and Eves kinfolk Cane and Abel in specific Cain the first case of evil on earth by murder of his brother through jealousy from lack of praise from God, So Beowulf wasn’t only delivering justice but justice for the greater cause against evil.
Casting a shadow for most acts of justice in literature as well as in society, inspiring other authors to piece together literary aterial like Eaters of the dead about a Arabic man who is adopted by a fleet of Caucasian man to ride a mountain side of monsters of pure evil, show that was later even adapted into a movie titled 13th warrior published in 1999 with inspiring actors like Antonio Banderas. “Grendel was driven under the fen- banks, fatally hurt, to his desolate lair. His days were numbered, the end of his life was coming over him and he knew it for certain; the one bloody clash had fulfilled the dearest wishes of the Dains.
The man who had landed among them, proud and sure, had purged the hall, kept it from harm; he was happy with is nightwork and the courage he had shown. The great captain had boldly fulfilled his boast to the Dains: he had healed and relieved a huge distress. “This quote backs up the idea that people in this age appreciated, promoted as well as gave high praise this type of hero but at times graphic and barbaric practice of enforcing or applying of justice, therefore backing the portrayal of justice in this time as heroic but heroic though the use of brute force.
Beowulf’s 20th counterpart is definitely Dc’s character Batman, a super hero that is known for his bad endencies, in modern day media justice has developed substantially since the story of Beowulf came out but retained a lot of qualities from 1000 AD, qualities showcased in the movies series that are very similar to those of the great warrior Beowulf showed. Scott Vollum out of the College of Criminal Justice Sam Houston State University Commented in his article, The Portrayal of crime and justice in the Comic Book Superhero Mythos. Born of violence, Batman adopts the mantle of the bat to strike fear into street criminals like the one who murdered his parents. His dark gray and black costume, his reliance on technology, and his willingness to resort to violence to accomplish his ends suggest that the new face of crime in post- Depression America necessitates a more retributive, street level form of justice.
By adhering to common themes of the hero mythology while offering distinct interpretations of American culture and the nature of crime in the wake of the Great Depression, Superman and Batman, respectively, epitomize both the idealism of justice and the realism of urban crime. ” Stating and supporting the idea that even after thousands of ear later that heroes can emerge with violent and more brutal tendencies can still be supported in the public eye.
A rewind to Victorian England in the Bram Stroker novel Dracula a novel about a man solicitor who goes to England to make a sell on a estate but ends up getting into a lot of conflict when he is imprisoned by a vampire inspired from the, historical figure Vlad Tepes who dominated the area of the Wallachia in the mid-15th century, he was also better known by the names Vlad Dracula and Vlad the Impaler, and a group of friends and co-works assemble to defet the evil of Dracula.
Stroker Achieved excellence when illustrating that a group of people with each having a set of exclusive skills can come together to save justice or the world. The Irish author first published the book may of 1897 and vigilantly justice in books was definitely a common theme in this time period in the book one of the main characters stated “But we are strong, each in our purpose and we are all more strong together.
Backing the theme of the book that a group of people can be constructed and come together for the greater good of justice, this practice can also be found in ontrast to modern day media with little to no spin or changing of concepts These group acts are showcased in the movie league of extraordinary gentleman after over one hundred years the same qualities stood out in the movie every character had an special ability to combat the antagonist in the movie for example, Mr. Hyde from the book written by was strong when his bad side of him came out and he was able to use his strength to his advantage , when it comes to the viglanty approach to justice there is a lot more laid back enforcement when put in contrast to the brute force fashion. In conclusion