Laws Of Honor Beccaria

The laws of honour are the laws that “respects the opinion of others” (39). Honour is inconsistent with the view that the protection of liberty should be the motivation for crime and punishment because when individual fights for honour they return to a state of nature which from Beccaria’s point of view is unacceptable. The following can be illustrated in the following quote, “honour… could not be a part of the common deposite, and therefore, whilst we act under its influence, we return, for that instant, to a state of nature, and withdraw ourselves from the laws” (41). It should also be noted that when we return to this state of nature we take a step back from the laws.
Beccaria believes that there should be laws to ensure that dueling be
eliminated. This belief can be seen in the quote, “in vain have the laws endeavoured to abolish this custom, by punishing the offenders with death” (43). These laws that are established to ensure that the dueling is prohibited should also protect a person’s feelings. This is illustrated in the following quote, “a man of honour, deprived of the esteem of others, foresees that he must be reduced” (43). Dueling is believed to be the most appropriate method to penalize a wrongdoer. The following idea is illustrated in the following, “the best method of preventing this crime is to punish the aggressor” (43). However, Beccaria does not appreciate individuals taking the law into their own hands, therefore dueling was not accepted by Beccaria.