Justice, righteousness and Terry Pratchett

Abstract

Justice, as a concept, is the foundation of the law. In this article the importance of the concept of justice and how the approach to justice is necessary to temper the law is discussed with reference to Lon Fuller’s Case of the Speluncean Explorers and John Rawls’ “original position”. The article then procedes to discuss the increasing need to establish a social conscience and sense of justice amongst South African law students whose underpreparedness for tertiary education acts as a barrier to accessing complex academic materials. The article suggest how, relying on the principles of the Law and Literature Movement, Terry Pratchett’s insightful social commentaries embedded in his fiction writings might meaningfully be drawn upon to instil both a love of reading and an insight into the human condition in law students.