Key Philosophical Justifications For Punishment Analysis
Examine The Key Philosophical Justifications For Punishment
'Punishment proceeds on the principle that there is an eternal distinction between right and wrong, and that this distinction must be maintained for its own sake' (Dictionary.com, 2012). In this essay I will examine the idea of revenge, retributivism and just desert, utilitarianism and deterrence and finally restorative approaches as the key philosophical justifications for punishment. The aim of this essay will be to argue that there is no flawless philosophilcal justification for punishment been put forward to this day and for an individual or an institution to achieve justice various forms of punishment must be used.
Punishment can be defined as 'a penalty or sanction given …show more content…
There is an accepted definition of restorative justice but there is no one single process of it. Tony Marshal (1999: 5) suggests that this would be a commonly accepted definition for restorative justice, it is 'a process whereby parties of a stake in a specific offence collectively resolve how to deal with the aftermath of the offence and it's implications for the future'. In terms of the process, it involves negotiation and agreement where the voice of the stakeholders (the victim, the offender and the community) are the most important. Measurment is then determined by the satifaction of the stakeholders, more imparticularly the victim and the community (Ashworth, 2002). Restoratice justice is different than previous justifications for punishment as it is meant to have a positive impact on offenders in the way it suggest punishment confronts offenders with the consequences of the offence thus giving them the chance to fix the damage caused whether it be to the victim or community and this approach will help them to find a solution to their problems as to why they committed the offence in the first place (Gaudreault, 2005). Another way to look at this approach would be that restorative justice restores the harm done to victims, helps the offender to reintergrate back in to society and works with the community to restore itself and aids reducing crime in the area. (Zedner,
'Punishment proceeds on the principle that there is an eternal distinction between right and wrong, and that this distinction must be maintained for its own sake' (Dictionary.com, 2012). In this essay I will examine the idea of revenge, retributivism and just desert, utilitarianism and deterrence and finally restorative approaches as the key philosophical justifications for punishment. The aim of this essay will be to argue that there is no flawless philosophilcal justification for punishment been put forward to this day and for an individual or an institution to achieve justice various forms of punishment must be used.
Punishment can be defined as 'a penalty or sanction given …show more content…
There is an accepted definition of restorative justice but there is no one single process of it. Tony Marshal (1999: 5) suggests that this would be a commonly accepted definition for restorative justice, it is 'a process whereby parties of a stake in a specific offence collectively resolve how to deal with the aftermath of the offence and it's implications for the future'. In terms of the process, it involves negotiation and agreement where the voice of the stakeholders (the victim, the offender and the community) are the most important. Measurment is then determined by the satifaction of the stakeholders, more imparticularly the victim and the community (Ashworth, 2002). Restoratice justice is different than previous justifications for punishment as it is meant to have a positive impact on offenders in the way it suggest punishment confronts offenders with the consequences of the offence thus giving them the chance to fix the damage caused whether it be to the victim or community and this approach will help them to find a solution to their problems as to why they committed the offence in the first place (Gaudreault, 2005). Another way to look at this approach would be that restorative justice restores the harm done to victims, helps the offender to reintergrate back in to society and works with the community to restore itself and aids reducing crime in the area. (Zedner,