Paul Bloomfield (University of Connecticut): Justice as the Virtue of Respect
Plato's Republic divided subsequent study of justice in two, as a virtue of people and of institutions. Here, a reunification is attempted. Justice is first understood as the mean between arrogance and servility, where just people properly respect themselves and others. Because self-respect is a special instance of respect generally, justice requires a single standard for self and others, treating like cases alike. In understanding justice in terms of proper respect, structural analogies become apparent between "recognition" and "appraisal" respect, on one hand, and Rawls' two principles of justice on the other. The paper closes with a discussion of how mercy is related to justice and an explanation of why just people always look for reasons to mitigate punishment but never to aggravate it.
