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Reflection Essay

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Throughout the course of my high school career I have primarily been intellectually interested in the evolution of the law and the role of legal institutions in modern society. I was first drawn to the law when I realized that it often goes beyond punishing or compensating individuals and considers, more broadly, the interests and goals of society at large and the community in which we live. I was able to first explore my interest in the law during a business law course, which I found fascinating. But it was only after I had taken courses in Criminal Law & Criminal Procedure, Constitutional Law, Evidence & Trial Advocacy, and Torts that I was able to truly understand the law’s role in creating and maintaining social order. The common thread interweaving most of the law is the notion that socially unreasonable conduct should be penalized and those who are its victims should be compensated, or at least vindicated. I was excited by question of who determines what conduct is reasonable. Of course, determining what is unreasonable is a formidable task, because reasonableness, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. The overall goal in defining reasonableness is to balance the plaintiff’s need for protection against the defendant's claim of freedom to pursue his own ends. But how does one determine reasonableness of conduct? Should one take into consideration, for example, the parties’ religious beliefs, their physical disabilities, their values, emotional idiosyncrasies, or
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