Use of Justice in Traditional Societies

This book explores the comparability of conflict resolution mechanisms in East Asian and European traditional societies by focusing on Martin Dinges' concept of "Use of Justice," which is a working concept that focuses on the behavior of ordinary people in selecting and using various conflict resolution tools, not limited to courts. The study of early modern history in Europe has gained a new framework with this working concept, moving beyond the traditional framework of institutional history to focus on the actions of the parties to the conflict.

The volume is divided into three parts. Parts I and II consist of individual studies based on archive researches. The authors, who are well versed in the various types of courts and regional records, use statistics and specific cases to show the actual images of the users of justice, their interaction with the authorities and the diverse ways in which justice was used by the people. Building on the empirical research of the first two parts, Part III develops various theoretical and methodological considerations of East-West comparability in analysing the research findings of Parts I and II. In this part (III) one can find reflections on whether or how comparability in "Use of Justice" research can be ensured, in which the inventor of the concept also participates.