Why Do We Have Laws in Society?
Why do we have laws in society?
Laws are rules that keep stability in our community. These laws provide social cohesion, which attempts to create an atmosphere of social harmony and social change. Laws are put in place to ensure safety to the general public. In Celtic times society’s structure was based on clans. Rules were made and enforced by the Druid’s. If someone was to go against these rules they would be punished no matter the nature of the crime. In Elizabethan times society was structured into classes regarding your rank as a citizen. Laws were put into place by the king or the Parliament House of Lords and Commons, these laws were not enforced by anyone. However if caught disobeying the King’s laws you were punished according to the nature of your crime.
Laws reflect on many aspects of our society such as the values, moral, social and economic view of things. Social values have changed over the years, which are reflected in the laws changing. For example, the Equal Opportunity Act makes it unlawful to discriminate against other people. You can no longer treat someone differently because of the colour of his or hers skin or their gender. Another law based on social values is the Clean Air Act. This law makes it illegal to burn rubbish as it contaminates the surrounding area. Years ago many people had incinerators in their backyard to burn rubbish, which is no longer allowed.
Laws based on economic values are laws such as being able to own your own property. This also ties into the social value of discrimination making it unlawful to prohibit someone from owning property due to their race or gender. Another law based on economic values is the law that enables citizens to own and run their own business and collect the profits. Being able to spend the money on whatever they would like.
Values are constantly changing which means the laws have to change to accommodate them. Because of the ever improving technology, many laws have been made to keep
Laws are rules that keep stability in our community. These laws provide social cohesion, which attempts to create an atmosphere of social harmony and social change. Laws are put in place to ensure safety to the general public. In Celtic times society’s structure was based on clans. Rules were made and enforced by the Druid’s. If someone was to go against these rules they would be punished no matter the nature of the crime. In Elizabethan times society was structured into classes regarding your rank as a citizen. Laws were put into place by the king or the Parliament House of Lords and Commons, these laws were not enforced by anyone. However if caught disobeying the King’s laws you were punished according to the nature of your crime.
Laws reflect on many aspects of our society such as the values, moral, social and economic view of things. Social values have changed over the years, which are reflected in the laws changing. For example, the Equal Opportunity Act makes it unlawful to discriminate against other people. You can no longer treat someone differently because of the colour of his or hers skin or their gender. Another law based on social values is the Clean Air Act. This law makes it illegal to burn rubbish as it contaminates the surrounding area. Years ago many people had incinerators in their backyard to burn rubbish, which is no longer allowed.
Laws based on economic values are laws such as being able to own your own property. This also ties into the social value of discrimination making it unlawful to prohibit someone from owning property due to their race or gender. Another law based on economic values is the law that enables citizens to own and run their own business and collect the profits. Being able to spend the money on whatever they would like.
Values are constantly changing which means the laws have to change to accommodate them. Because of the ever improving technology, many laws have been made to keep