“The first duty of society is justice,” Alexander Hamilton once said. The famed statesman could have chosen the word “fairness” instead of “justice,” but that phrasing carries less authority. This divergence between two seemingly synonymous terms can be traced to their ancient origins to reveal their key differences.
“Just” derives from the Latin iustus (see our exploration of how the letter “i” turned into the letter “j“), meaning “lawful” or “rightful.” The adjective use (different from the adverb usage) has been used in this context since the Roman Empire. “Fair,” on the other hand, traces back to the Old English fæger, meaning “beautiful” or “pleasant,” and it eventually broadened to also mean “good” or “advantageous.” By the 13th century, the metaphorical usage of “equitable” emerged — and this is what formed the bridge between the two concepts.
Today, “just” is firmly tied to legal jargon. “No idea in Western civilization has been more consistently linked to ethics and morality than the idea of justice,” experts from the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clarita University wrote in a 2018 article. We use the adjective “just” when trying to describe what is lawful or grounded in objective principles, typically in alignment with some established legal or ethical code.
“Fair,” as an adjective, is used in a relative sense, but still usually in the context of a guiding principle. The familiar adage “fair and square” emphasizes core ideas of fairness: equality and balance. While both terms touch on concepts of moral integrity, “fair” is more flexible and considers context based on all parties’ needs and circumstances.
Consider their usage in a recognizable setting: You’re driving in an unfamiliar city, and you turn right on a red light. This is against local laws, and you receive a citation. Receiving a traffic ticket is a “just” consequence because the action was against the law, but it may not seem “fair” because the rule breaking was unintentional. Similarly, in a dreaded group project scenario, it might not be “fair” for every member to receive the same grade, but it is “just” if the grading guidelines are made clear at the outset of the project. Ultimately, which word you choose is up to you, but they aren’t always synonymous. The distinct nuances of these terms can shape how we evaluate situations and make decisions, from the courtroom to the classroom.
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