A Time to Kill - Justice Is Not Relative
~ Justice is ‘not’ Relative ~
“I want to tell you a story. I 'm going to ask you all to close your eyes while I tell you the story. I want you to listen to me. I want you to listen to yourselves…. Can you see her? Her raped, beaten, broken body soaked in their urine, soaked in their semen, soaked in her blood, left to die. Can you see her? I want you to picture that little girl."
“Now - imagine she 's white!” (Schumacher, 1996)
In the 1996 release of his film A Time to Kill, film director Joel Schumacher submits a formidable adaptation of John Grisham 's 1989 legal thriller novel of the same name. The film’s plot, set in the Deep South (Mississippi) involves the rape of a young black girl and the arrest of white rapists responsible - and their subsequent murder by the girl 's father. The remainder of the film then focuses on the trial of the killer, who surprisingly chooses a young unheralded white male lawyer to defend him.
At issue are several questions, to be approached and responded to from the Christian tradition. The questions are as follows:
1. Why does Carl Lee take the law into his own hands?
2. Why does Jake take Carl Lee’s case?
3. Jake indicates to Carl Lee that they are friends. Carl Lee corrects him quickly. What is Carl Lee’s rationale? Race, defensibility, access to resources
4. Explain the impact of the 2 psychologists’ testimony.
5. Explain the impact of the deputy who was shot during Carl Lee’s revenge.
6. Why is Jake’s closing argument so effective? What type of strategy is he using?
7. Why does Jake bring his family to Carl Lee’s party at the end of the movie?
My summation is as follows:
(1) Carl Lee decides to take up arms once he is confident that the violators of his daughter would likely walk free or receive light punitive sentences for their vicious assault. Quite frankly, while his lawyer vies to go for the insanity defense, Carl Lee informs all that he, in fact, was not insane during commission of the murders. What
“I want to tell you a story. I 'm going to ask you all to close your eyes while I tell you the story. I want you to listen to me. I want you to listen to yourselves…. Can you see her? Her raped, beaten, broken body soaked in their urine, soaked in their semen, soaked in her blood, left to die. Can you see her? I want you to picture that little girl."
“Now - imagine she 's white!” (Schumacher, 1996)
In the 1996 release of his film A Time to Kill, film director Joel Schumacher submits a formidable adaptation of John Grisham 's 1989 legal thriller novel of the same name. The film’s plot, set in the Deep South (Mississippi) involves the rape of a young black girl and the arrest of white rapists responsible - and their subsequent murder by the girl 's father. The remainder of the film then focuses on the trial of the killer, who surprisingly chooses a young unheralded white male lawyer to defend him.
At issue are several questions, to be approached and responded to from the Christian tradition. The questions are as follows:
1. Why does Carl Lee take the law into his own hands?
2. Why does Jake take Carl Lee’s case?
3. Jake indicates to Carl Lee that they are friends. Carl Lee corrects him quickly. What is Carl Lee’s rationale? Race, defensibility, access to resources
4. Explain the impact of the 2 psychologists’ testimony.
5. Explain the impact of the deputy who was shot during Carl Lee’s revenge.
6. Why is Jake’s closing argument so effective? What type of strategy is he using?
7. Why does Jake bring his family to Carl Lee’s party at the end of the movie?
My summation is as follows:
(1) Carl Lee decides to take up arms once he is confident that the violators of his daughter would likely walk free or receive light punitive sentences for their vicious assault. Quite frankly, while his lawyer vies to go for the insanity defense, Carl Lee informs all that he, in fact, was not insane during commission of the murders. What
References: Windley-Daoust, J. (2008). Living justice and peace, catholic social teaching in practice. (2nd ed. ed.). Winona, Minnesota: St Mar 'ys Press Schumacher, J. (Director) (1996). A time to kill [Theater].