Introduction:-
Today we'll be reading John Galsworthy's Justice. The genre of this play is crime, and it was a part of a campaign to improve the condition of British prisons. Now let's dive into the play.

Section 1: The Forgery
The play opens up in the office of James How and Walter How, they are two lawyers. A young woman appears at the door wanting to meet the junior clerk William Falder. Her name is Ruth Honeywell, and it appears Falder and Ruth are lovers and she's planning to elope with him. He wants to save her from her abusive and drunkard husband and Falder asks her to meet him with her two sons tonight at the railway station. After a while, the owners of the firm Walter and James How, they enter the office. They are checking the previous balances when they realize there is some mismatch in the balance. Later they discover that the cheque issued for 9 pounds has been altered to 90 pounds and has been encashed on the same day. The bank cashier is summoned and asked to identify who cashed the cheque. The cashier identifies Falder as the person who cashed the cheque. Falder confesses to the forgery and Walter, and senior clerk Cokeson, show some sympathy, but senior partner James does not. He turns him over to the police.

Section 2: Falder's Trial
The next act of the play takes place in court. It is Falder's trial. He is defended by a younger lawyer, Hector Frome. He does not deny that Falder altered the cheque. Hector argues that Falder wanted to save Ruth, the woman he loves, from the wrath of her evil husband. He wanted to leave the country with her but did not have enough funds to fulfill that dream. The judge does not agree with Frome's argument and finds him guilty. He is sentenced to three years.

Section 3: In Prison
Moving on we see the scene opens in a room in the prison.It is Christmas Eve. Cokeson comes to visit Falder. He has sympathy for Falder and wants him to be released. Cokeson asks if Ruth might be allowed to visit Falder in the prison. The governor ignores this request and after a while Falder is released on a condition that he has to report to the governor on a regular basis. Ruth visits Cokeson in the office and Cokeson assures her that he will help them in any way possible. So when Walter and James arrive, Cokeson asks them to reconsider employing Falder as he has already suffered enough. So Falder tells him that Ruth left her husband and is living with another man to feed her children. So, Walter sympathizes with Falder but James wants him to disassociate himself from Ruth if he wants to get a job again. So Falder does not agree but Ruth promises to keep herself away from Falder. After that James agreed to reemploy him.

Section 4: The End
Then we see when the stage is set for a happy ending. A detective enters the scene. It looks like Falder has failed to report himself to the governor so he must be punished for the lapse. So this time even James resents this and tries to protect Falder but it is of no avail. Haunting memories of prison drive Falder mad and he jumps out of the building and dies. So that's the sad ending.

Section 5: Facts and Quotes
It is a social commentary and exploration of the themes of justice, morality and the legal system.
Some important lines are
(a) "Justice is a machine that, when someone has once given it the starting push, rolls on off itself."
(b) "Life calls the tune, we dance."