"Justice implies something which it is not right to do and wrong not to do but which some individual person can claim from us as his moral right." Whose quotation is this?

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is 3:

The correct option is **J. S. Mill** (John Stuart Mill). This quotation is taken directly from Mill's major work, *Utilitarianism*, specifically from Chapter V, where he discusses the connection between utility and justice. Mill, a leading proponent of Utilitarianism, sought to reconcile the fundamental principle of maximizing happiness with the deeply felt human notion of justice and individual rights. He recognized that the concept of "justice" often appears to oppose the calculating nature of utilitarianism, as justice frequently involves enforcing specific moral rights. Mill's definition of justice, as presented in the quote, perfectly encapsulates his solution: Justice involves duties that are so important for the general welfare (utility) that they become perfect obligations, which an individual person has a moral right to claim from us. In other words, justice is rooted in utility but gains its unique moral force because it concerns protecting the "most vital interests" (safety, security, and liberty) of every person. The quote emphasizes the aspect of a *moral right* that can be *claimed*, linking justice not just to general societal good, but to specific, enforceable duties toward individuals, which is the core of Mill's utilitarian justification for rights.

The incorrect option is 1:

**Plato** (Option 1) is incorrect because his conception of justice, particularly as detailed in *The Republic*, is fundamentally structural and holistic, not centered on individual "moral rights" claimable against others in the modern liberal sense. For Plato, justice is the proper arrangement and harmony of society and the soul, where each class (Rulers, Auxiliaries, Appetites) performs its specific function without interference. When the philosopher-king rules and all citizens are in their rightful place, the state is just. While his philosophy certainly implies duties and proper conduct, it does not prioritize the legal and moral claim of an individual person over the function of the state or the collective good in the way Mill's definition does, which speaks to post-Enlightenment liberal individualism.

The incorrect option is 2:

**Polemarchus** (Option 2) is a character in Plato’s *The Republic*, not an independent political philosopher whose quotation would stand alongside canonical works of justice. In the dialogue, Polemarchus offers a conventional definition of justice, famously stating that justice is "doing good to friends and harm to enemies." This definition is immediately challenged and dismantled by Socrates, as it is self-serving and inadequate as a universal moral principle. Polemarchus's traditional, non-philosophical view is entirely distinct from Mill’s complex, rights-based, utilitarian defense of justice, which focuses on the moral claim of an individual to protection under a system of perfect obligations.

The incorrect option is 4:

**Ernest Barker** (Option 4) was a prominent 20th-century British political scientist and historian, known for his scholarship on Greek political theory, particularly Plato and Aristotle, and his translation of Gierke's works. While Barker was a highly respected commentator on political theory and justice, he was not the source of this seminal definition of justice. The quotation provided is a foundational text in 19th-century liberal thought, specifically tied to the Utilitarian tradition. Barker's contributions were primarily historical and analytical interpretations of the works of others, whereas this definition originates directly from J. S. Mill's attempt to systematically define the relationship between justice, rights, and utility.