What are instances in
which breaking the law is justifiable? That’s a question that many people have
asked. For this paper, I would like to address when breaking the law is
justifiable and defining when it is not. Now, as for sources, there is a vast
array at my disposal. The first that I would like to use for this paper is the
1996 movie, “A Time to Kill”. The film is an adaptation of John Grisham’s novel
by the same name. My reasoning behind
choosing this movie is clearly evident to anyone who has seen it. The movie
takes place during a previous time in our history in which racism is ever
prevalent in the South. The movie starts out with an African American man’s 10
year old daughter getting sexually assaulted by two racist, country hicks. The
father, outraged as any man would be, tries his best to go through the pathways
of the legal system, but much to his dismay, after all of the struggling
through immense opposition, his efforts prove fruitless when the two men walk
away scot-free; at least that is what the movie wants the viewer to believe!
Just as the two men are about to exit the court room, the little girl’s father
bursts through the door with a rifle in his hand and vengeance in his eyes. As
he unloads the contents of his clip, the two men become riddled with holes.
Though this may appear to be an extreme case, this man was not violent to begin
with. He had proof that these two men brutally raped his daughter and, after
wading through the channels of the legal system, was not done justice. Because
of this, the father did not decide to take care of the situation himself; he
was forced to. Had he not stepped in, the two men would have walked right out
of that courtroom and would never have received any consequences for their
actions. This source really demonstrates an instance in which breaking the law,
to me, is justifiable. The father followed the correct paths, yet was met with
injustice in a time of frequent prejudice towards African Americans. It is because of this that his actions are
justified.
Schumaker, Joel,
dir. A Time to Kill. Writ. Grisham John ,
and Goldman Akiva. 1996. Film.
18 Feb 2013.
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