Revenge and Morals
The Mentality of Society, and Ourselves
Have you ever wanted to get back at your sibling/s for telling your mother about an altercation or fight you guys had? This feeling that one may get can be considered revenge. Revenge usually looks like inflicting pain onto others who have caused a wrongdoing to that person themselves, or someone that they care about. Revenge can be seen verbally, or physically. The debate regarding revenge consists of determining whether revenge can be justified or not. However it really just revolves around one’s morals and conscience. In Friedrich Nietzsche’s , “Morality of Violence”, he states the idea that “every injury has its equivalent”, which means that there is always a deed that will make up for any inconvenience.
Speaking in terms of the Department of Justice, one may feel the need to take matters into their own hands just because the justice system seems to fail many people, specifically the black and hispanic communities. (Dunnaville) There are countless accounts of police brutality on minority groups, and mistrials, so this is when the question of morality comes in. If the government we live under cannot find justice and peace for the unlawful things that hurt us, what are we left with?
Another way to “get revenge” can be seen in the eyes of Karma. Others may let “karma” do their job. Karma is the belief that one’s actions determine the future or one’s fate, or what one may do to a person will be reciprocated back to them. Karma can be beneficial, or not depending on what one did.
“One burns something in so that it remains in one’s memory: only what does not cease to give pain remains in one’s memory”, this is one of the first principles of psychology. Which implements this idea that people must do something, literally, painful in order for one to have remorse in their memory. In a psychological lense, revenge can be seen as a defense mechanism because one will receive pain, and in return they feel like something has to be done. Defense mechanisms exist because the human body wants to unconsciously get rid of whatever it is that is hurting it emotionally and/or physically. The Code of Hammurabi is one of the oldest laws ever recorded, and it is mainly known for its saying, “An eye for an eye.” Which means that is debtor will receive what was done to the creditor. The debtor is the one who owes something, and the creditor is the one who has had something done to them. In terms of revenge, the creditor will inflict revenge. If we look at the justice system of the United States, we find that criminals, similarly, are the debtors to the system since they owe something to the court. And the court and judges are the creditors since they are performing the punishment.
While taking the time to analyze the importance and ethical values of revenge, one may ask themselves, “When is revenge actually okay?” This really depends on how one evaluates the situation, and one must ask themselves if they are looking into it in terms of their society, or personal beliefs and values. For example, around a decade ago, a man named Michael A. Mullen killed two pedophiles because he wanted to “spread the message that ‘we’ will not tolerate ‘our’ children being used and abused.” (Mullen) Mullen was arrested/ surrendered over a decade ago, but his case remains to give insight, and his case is publicly characterized by revenge according to murderpedia.org. Was his reasoning valid? Maybe, but in terms of society and the justice system, he was in the wrong. The justice system believes he was wrong due to their ideal that: killing a murderer will not bring the victim back to life. The justice system also believes that a life in prison is a better punishment. This allows the criminal to have nothing, but their thoughts and remorse. But what about the cases where the criminal is able to receive parole? Or what if the criminal actually enjoys their alone time, thus there not being any suffering?
Viewing morality in a feminist point of view, one may notice that women who fight back against their perpetrators are often sentenced to many years in prison. However, it seems, to me, that it is very unethical to charge a woman with such a sentence for defending herself while in a state of fear and vulnerability. Yakiri Rubio, a woman who was attacked by men in Mexico City was held in prison for three months, but was intially sentenced to 10 years in prison. The fact that she was even charged with 10 years to begin with is mind bottling because all she did was defend herself from these men who were assaulting and attacking her. In the eyes of the Mexican legal system, she took matters into her own hands and sought revenge. Anyone, who fights for their life, literally, is not seeking revenge. They are seeking a way to remain alive. Fortunately, Rubio is now completely free and her experiences have given her a chance to explore joining Mexico’s justice/legal system.
Morality can be questioned when one feels the urge to seek revenge and plot one’s failures. There is no right or wrong answer to knowing if revenge is justifiable because whatever may seem right to one person, may be wrong in the eye’s of society and the law and vice versa. Revenge is the act of wanting to hurt someone, and in some cases, I feel that it is justifiably “okay” to seek it. During times when self-defense is needed, what more can one do if their lives are at stake? One knows and understands that there is a justice system put in place to help “reconcile” the problem, but when a life threatening situation is happening, all that goes through one’s mind is, “I need this to stop right now,” and this is me speaking from personal experience.
