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Examples Of Retributive Justice In Things Fall Apart

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In the Novel, Things Fall Apart by Achebe, readers witness the Ibo justice system in action throughout the story. During the week of peace, protagonist, Okonkwo acts in rage therefore resulting in punishment. His belongings are also burned, and he is exiled as punishment after an accidental shooting. Overall, there are four forms of justice: distributive justice, procedural justice, restorative justice, and retributive justice. I would like to focus on the last two, restorative and retributive justice (the ones readers see the most in the novel). Restorative justice restores order. An example of this type of justice is an easy apology. Restoration means returning back to the original state, so it may consist of some sort of repentance to demonstrate one is in fact apologetic. …show more content…

On the other hand, retributive justice is founded strictly on the principle of punishment. The intention of this form of justice is to discourage the violator from engaging in any future acts that are wrong. The Ibo justice system is founded on restitution rather than retribution. The goal is to restore balance to its rightful state versus just penalizing the wrong doer. It is no doubt the Ibo people handle justice differently than current day United States of America. The process as a whole is just different. In the USA we have established basic rights which are known to us as the amendments. Stated in the eighth amendment, it is noted that there shall be no cruel, unusual, or excessive punishment furnished upon any person. These rights apply to all people. While the Ibo and USA have similar ideals on justice, the superficial ways justice is handled contrasts

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