What are the ethics of revenge?

When we’re motivated to seek revenge, it’s often out of a sense of fairness. If an injustice has been committed, then the only way to restore balance in the moral universe is if the wrongdoers pay for what they’ve done. Justice will not prevail until those who have caused suffering are made to suffer themselves.

Is seeking revenge okay?

But while the need for revenge can be understandable, experts say it is never healthy. Some people equate revenge with seeking justice, but the two are not the same. People who seek revenge are driven by anger and violence and have not thought about how channel their negative feelings into something positive.

Is vengeance a good thing or a bad thing?

The answer is that far from an evolutionary mistake, revenge serves a very useful purpose. Michael McCullough puts it this way: although people might say seeking revenge “is really bad for you” – that it might ruin your relationships, for example – the fact that it exists at all is a very good thing.

Is revenge justified or misguided?

However, if the victim of the crime believes the system has brought proportionate punishment upon the criminal, then the individual has also been avenged. Since both the state and victim have achieved appropriate retribution, the act can be considered justified revenge.

Is revenge an emotion?

Revenge (n): the action of inflicting hurt or harm on someone for an injury or wrong suffered at their hands; the desire to inflict retribution. As much as we hate to admit it, revenge is one of those intense feelings that comes up for every single human being.

Why don’t we use an eye for an eye?

An eye for an eye means that the punishment should fit the crime. If it doesn’t, it is immoral and is therefore likely to cause more harm than good. Turning the other cheek cannot be a policy for dealing with crime.