Theory of punishment whereby all or part of the purpose of punishment is the infliction of pain or disadvantage on an offender which is in some sense commensurate with his offence and which is inflicted independently of reform or deterrence.
For a weak theory the commensurate amount need not be inflicted but may be, and a limit is placed up to which reformative or deterrent punishment may go but beyond which it may not.
A strong theory insists that the punishment must be inflicted, but again places a limit beyond which it may not go.
Retributivism opposes excessive harshness as much as excessive leniency, and opposes the violation of the offender’s rights in the interests of social expediency or personal spite and so on.
Mitigating circumstances, diminished responsibility, and so on are taken into account before determining the commensurate amount, but there are still problems in determining this, and the strong retributivist, especially, must justify violating the presumed moral ban on inflicting unnecessary pain.
Source:
J Feinberg, ‘The Expressive Function of Punishment’, Doing and Deserving (1970)
Table of Contents
- 1 Videos
- 2 Related Products
- 2.1 Retributivism: Essays on Theory and Policy
- 2.2 Retributivism
- 2.3 Retributivism Has a Past: Has It a Future? (Studies in Penal Theory and Philosophy)
- 2.4 [(Retributivism Has a Past: Has It a Future? )] [Author: Michael Tonry] [Jan-2012]
- 2.5 Retributivism Has a Past: Has It a Future? (Studies in Penal Theory and Philosophy) (2012-01-05)
- 2.6 Punishment
- 2.7 Why Punish?: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Punishment
- 2.8 Responsibility and Punishment (Library of Ethics and Applied Philosophy Book 34)
- 2.9 Corporal Punishment: A Philosophical Assessment (Routledge Research in Applied Ethics Book 5)
- 2.10 Retribution, Justice, and Therapy: Essays in the Philosophy of Law (Philosophical Studies Series Book 16)
Videos
Retributivism: Essays on Theory and Policy
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- 272 Pages - 04/25/2011 (Publication Date) - Oxford University Press (Publisher)
Retributivism Has a Past: Has It a Future? (Studies in Penal Theory and Philosophy)
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- 304 Pages - 12/12/2011 (Publication Date) - Oxford University Press (Publisher)
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Retributivism Has a Past: Has It a Future? (Studies in Penal Theory and Philosophy) (2012-01-05)
- Hardcover Book
- unknown author (Author)
- 05/18/2022 (Publication Date) - OUP USA (Publisher)
Punishment
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Brooks, Thom (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 286 Pages - 11/14/2012 (Publication Date) - Routledge (Publisher)
Why Punish?: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Punishment
- Canton, Rob (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 256 Pages - 06/01/2017 (Publication Date) - Red Globe Press (Publisher)
Responsibility and Punishment (Library of Ethics and Applied Philosophy Book 34)
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Corlett, J. Angelo (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 281 Pages - 12/23/2013 (Publication Date) - Springer (Publisher)
Corporal Punishment: A Philosophical Assessment (Routledge Research in Applied Ethics Book 5)
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Lenta, Patrick (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 254 Pages - 09/14/2017 (Publication Date) - Routledge (Publisher)
Retribution, Justice, and Therapy: Essays in the Philosophy of Law (Philosophical Studies Series Book 16)
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Murphy, J.G. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 255 Pages - 12/06/2012 (Publication Date) - Springer (Publisher)
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