Law and justice across the ages of artistic representation -- a fair system of justice means nothing when ice water, corruption, and evil run through the hearts of those appointed to enforce the system

The 1980's crime novel Gorky Park, Shakespeare's 'problem' play "Measure for Measure," Marx and Engels political manifesto "The Communist Manifesto," and the World War II Warner Brothers motion picture "Casablanca" all fundamentally ask, at their respective narrative and philosophical hearts the fundamental human question: what is justice? All grapple with the issue of how best to create a truly rather than a superficially just society. Do just men and women, or a just system of laws, produce fair and equitable societies? What is more important, a fair code of laws, or good people attempting to do what is right within any particular moral context? Despite having been produced during different times and for different purposes, these...
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