Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Justification of Punishment! :: Philosophy Philosophical Essays

Justification of PunishmentABSTRACT Both utilitarians and the deontologists be of the opinion that punishment is justifiable, but according to the utilitarian propereous thinkers, punishment can be justified solely by its consequences, while the deontologists believe that punishment is justifiable purely on retributive ground. D. D. Raphael is found to mollify both views. According to him, a punishment is justified when it is both useful and deserved. Maclagan, on the other hand, denies it to be justifiable in the sense that it is not right to punish an offender. I claim that punishment is not justifiable but not in the sense in which it is claimed by Maclagan. The aim of this paper is to adjudicate the absurdity of the enquiry as to whether punishment can be justified. Difference results from differing interpretations of the term justification. In its traditional meaning, justification can hardly be heroic from evaluation. In this sense, to dislodge an act is to say that it is good or right. I differ from the traditional use and insist that no act or manner can be justified. Infliction of punishment is a human conduct and as such it is absurd to ask for its justification. I hold the view that to justify is to give reason, and it is only a statement or an assertion behind which we can put forth reason. Infliction of pain is an act behind which the promoter may have purpose or intention but not reason. So, it is not punishment, but rather statements concerning punishment that we can justify. Regarding the justification of punishment philosophers are not of the same opinion. According to the utilitarian moral thinkers punishment can be justified solely by its consequences. That is to say, according to the utilitarian account of punishment A ought to be punished means that A has done an act harmful to people and it needs to be prevented by punishment or the threat of it. So, it will be useful to punish A. Deontologists like Mabbott, Ewing and Hawkins, on t he other hand, believe that punishment is justifiable purely on retributive grounds. That is to say, according to them, only the past particular that a man has committed a crime is sufficient enough to justify the punishment inflicted on him. But D.D. Raphael is found to reconcile between the dickens opposite views. According to him, a punishment is justified when it is both useful and deserved.

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