Justice and Revenge: What Do They Mean?

As much as we would like to think of ourselves as "just" and "righteous" people, not everyone has a clear definition of what justice and revenge mean. Of course we can refer to a dictionary for the simplest definition, but justice and revenge often have personal meanings that vary from person to person.
As for me, I believe that justice and revenge are not exactly the same. Revenge, first of all, is strictly a personal feeling that makes us want to get back at someone. Revenge implies a desire to set something right: we feel as if an offender owes us money, property, dignity, or any other belonging that they have taken away.
Justice, on the other hand, is not personal. Instead, justice functions as an impartial system that determines an offender's appropriate punishment. Because the judicial process takes place in courts of law, justice is not based on what the victim thinks is fair.

Setting Things Right by Creating Equality

In our money-driven society, money has become the standard with which we determine equality, yet it is very hard to place such an earthly value on, say, a human life. As long as you have money, it is not too difficult to get away with a serious crime. If we look at William Ian Miller's analysis of the talionic societies, we will find that the old "eye for an eye" adage may help to revamp our justice system.
Miller acknowledges the fact that money cannot come close to the value of a human life. Therefore, the only compensation that will truly equate a wrongful act is something equal to the loss, which could very well be a human life. Miller's key argument about the talionic system returns dignity to our modern system. Miller claims that our seemingly sensitive society "confers anxious dignity" to wrongdoers . Why should wrongdoers receive dignity if they took someone else's away in the first place? Doesn't a justice system have to amend wrongdoing? If a criminal receives dignity from the public, then the vicitim will not feel any better and may even feel that they have not been treated equally.
Ultimately, Miller reveals the true purpose of a talionic system. It should not exist to satisfy vengeful feelings, but it should create peace. Establishing a punishment that fits the crime makes the two parties, the wrongdoer and the victim, equals again so that neither party feels as if they have been cheated.