Genre

This blog is a major component for Dr. Souder's Advanced Composition and Rhetoric 304. In this blog, I will respond to various Progymnasmatas and other rhetorical activities from our textook, "Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students" by Sharon Crowley and Debra Hawhee.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Chapter 2 Progymnasmata: Chreia (5)

Blindness affords the unique ability to form judgments based on fact and knowledge rather than physical or visual biases. The representation of justice as blind alludes to the notion of fair and equal judgment based solely on fact rather than visual aspects. Images of “justice” donning a blindfold decorate buildings worldwide where acts of justice are performed: courthouses, government offices, some schools, law enforcement agencies, etc.. The intention is to inform those who see this representation of “blind justice” that these agencies utilize the tactic of fair judgments. Statues of Blind Justice date back to ancient Roman and Greek times.



The woman in the statue is Themis, the goddess of justice and law. The most known detail in the statue is the blindfold covering her airs, but Themis also wields a sword in one hand and scales in the other. The sword is representative of the power of her decisions, while the scale is representative of the impartiality of justice. It was not until the 16th century that artists began blindfolding Themis to represent that justice is not subject to influence.



Works Cited:

"Themis, Dike, Justitia and Lady Justice." Ancient / Classical History - Ancient Greece & Rome & Classics Research Guide. Web. 22 Jan. 2010. .

Image:

http://www.abeautifuldifference.com/bronzeladyjustice.JPG
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2 comments:

  1. Josh ArguelloJanuary 23, 2010 at 12:17 PM

    I really like how parallel this is to today's judicial system

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  2. Meagan ClarkJanuary 23, 2010 at 4:07 PM

    This whole justice theme actually really hits home with me. For a year out of my high school career I worked as a file clerk for one of the attorneys in town and was an active participant in our schools Mock Trial class/club. For those who do not know what Mock Trial is...participating high schools compete with other schools in a courtroom. Real attorneys help the students prepare for their roles as attorneys and witnesses and the whole competition actually takes place in a courthouse judged by a panel of real judges and attorneys. I designed my high school's symbol (that went on jackets and what not) and I actually used the symbol of the balanced scales. Further more, in the attorneys office that I worked in she had a statue of Themis displayed. I always understood the balance of justice part of it, but the blindfold adds a whole interesting element to this symbol that I had actually never noticed or connected before. Great and very interesting topic!

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